Our Children
by koolgirl1120
Summary: A set of drabbles with all cannon couples (includes Clintasha and Steve/anonymous) with one thing in common: the subject of children. All of the Avengers live at the Tower together as their family grows steadily bigger. If there was a genre for fluff, I would have listed it. When reading, you can expect humour, banter, drama, a little angst, and lots of bonding. Accepting prompts.
1. Chapter 1: His Daughter (Steve)

**A/N. Hiya! So this is where I post one drabble per Avengers couple about the different perspectives of children. First up is Steve and all his adorable over protectiveness XD There's also a good dose of Tony in here. No, Tony and Steve did not have a kid together. It is a Steve/OC but it never mentions a name so you can imagine it's anyone (ex: Tania from my other story) as long as it's not Pepper, Natasha, Betty, or Jane because they will be in the other drabbles and they are all interrelated even if it doesn't show. You can think of this as part of my Coffee With You universe or not, you choose. Hope you enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers, however I own Alaina.**

**HIS DAUGHTER**

"Alaina." The name rolled off his tongue with ease as he stared at his little girl, lying asleep in his arms. He rocked back and forth, unable to take his eyes away from his daughter as she slept peacefully. "Alaina," he said again, feeling the corners of his lips turn up into a smile. "You're beautiful," he whispered, "and you look just like your mother."

He turned his head to gaze upon his wife, lying in the hospital bed, unconscious, with her hair about her head and tangled and disheveled. And yet, she was gorgeous to him.

A small sniffle from the baby caught his attention immediately and he fussed with the pink blanket surrounding his little girl. Alaina stirred slightly, wrinkled her nose, and then fell back asleep. Steve let ou a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding and sat down on the plastic chair by the bed, cradling his daughter to his newborn daughter to his chest.

How could it be that something so small could worry him so much? The need to protect this child – _his_ child – was so intense that all his other senses seemed dulled. Just a small sniffle and he was on edge. What would happen should she fall as a toddler or cried over something she believed to be devastating? He loathed the thought of one of his enemies bringing harm to her or his wife.

He held her tighter to him, ever careful of her fragility and delicate nature of her body. He vowed then and there never to endanger their lives and to forever be their sworn protector. And damn those who tried to make it otherwise.

"My little Alain, my little girl… you'll grow up to be the most amazing person the world has ever seen," he whispered to her softly.

A knock on the door nearly startled him to death and he jumped to his feet, covering his beloved daughter as best he could with one arm. The doorknob turned and Steve tensed; but it was just Tony. Exhaling slowly to calm his pounding heart, the Captain sunk back into the chair.

Tony gently closed the door behind him and smirked. "Jumpy, much?" He walked over to the father in the room and bent down to get a good look at Alaina. He wrinkled his nose. "It's red. And squishy."

Steve chuckled dryly. "Her name is Alaina and that's normal."

Tony reached out to her but hesitated, flicking his gaze up to his friend as if to ask silent permission. Steve smiled awkwardly and nodded. Tony continued the motion and trailed his finger down her tiny face gently.

For a few seconds, the billionaire's mask dissolved and Steve was able to see the real man; the one who wanted children but was getting a little old to do so and was scared that he would turn out like his own father. But then the mask was back and Tony removed his finger.

It was enough for Steve to make a split second decision. "Tony," he called quietly to get the man's attention, "I want you to be the godfather."

A second passed, sparked with shock. "Wha…? Me? But… why?"

"Because you and Pepper are the most stable couple I have ever seen. You both have so much to offer her and… I know how much you want kids."

Tony looked about ready to cry. "Are you sure?"

Steve nodded. "I'm sure."

Tony gestured to the sleeping mother. "Does she know?"

"We haven't discussed it, no. But I know she'll have no objections to my decision."

Tony sucked in a deep breath. "Okay," he finally said. Standing up, he sent father and daughter a cross between a genuine smile and a smirk. "You know that with me as the godfather, your kid's life is gonna be insane, right?"

Steve sent him a knowing look. "Her father is Captain America and she lives in Avengers Tower. Having her godfather be Iron Man and her Uncles be Hulk, Thor, and Hawkeye along with Aunt Natasha, Jane, and Betty isn't much of a stretch."

Tony shrugged. "Point taken." With that said, the industrialist exited the room, but not before he turned, mumbled, "Thank you" and shut the door.

Steve sighed, gazing into the face of his little girl. "I hope I did the right thing," he said to her, staring at her adorableness.

Another knock sounded and his wife stirred. Steve sighed again. "Time to let the others in."


	2. Chapter 2: Legolas & Gimli (Clintasha)

**A/N. Alright! Two in one day! Not bad. Okay, so this is a Clintasha one, though Natasha doesn't appear in it at all. This is basically just a moment between Clint and his son when the son is 8 and Tony walks in. Tony seems to be showing up a lot XD Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers but I own Jim and Alaina.**

Legolas & Gimli

The impossible happened: Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff – master assassins – had a baby. It was a boy. They named him Jim promptly before giving him up for adoption. But each center refused to take in a child from SHIELD. Even under aliases, no one would take him. Stuck with their son and living the lives of agents and super heroes that they believed no kid should have to grow up with parents like that, the spies handed him off to the Avengers whenever they went on missions. Jim (he was named inconspicuously for a reason) often played with Steve's daughter Alaina.

As Jim aged, he took an interest in archery, like his father, though he preferred it as a sport. At eight years old, Clint decided to give his son his very first bow.

When Tony walked in on the two practicing one day, he had a nickname epiphany. "Legolas!" he cried, hopping down the steps toward the target area. Clint turned to face him looking annoyed. He didn't often get quality time with his son, so when he did, he did not like being interrupted.

"What?"

"Gimli."

"Again, I repeat, what?"

"His name is Jim. It's perfect!"

"Gimli is pronounced GIMLEE not JIMLEE. And anyway, Gimli didn't wield a bow and arrow."

Tony waved it away carelessly. "Technicalities. It works fine. He even has red hair and is half your size." He knelt down to Jim's height. "Hey kiddo, what do you saw we ditch the bow and arrow and go get an axe?" he asked jokingly mostly to piss off Clint.

"No!" Father and son chorused.

The little boy wrinkled his nose. "What would I do with an axe?"

Tony opened his mouth to respond but Clint cut him off and ruffled Jim's hair. "Maybe when you're older I'll tell you."

Jim pouted. "That's your answer for everything!"

Tony laughed. "Want to hear my answer?"

"No," Clint answered for him and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Now get out so we can practice."

Tony huffed and stood up. "Fine. Be that way." He turned around and started walking away. "See ya Legolas and Gimli."

When he was gone, Jim tugged on his dad's shirt. Clint knelt down so that he could whisper in his ear. "Uncle Tony's getting old. He can't even remember our names!"

Clint burst out laughing. "No Jim, Tony's old but he's not THAT old. He was making a joke."

"I don't get it."

"Don't worry, we'll watch Lord of the Rings after practice. Then you'll get it."

"Cool!" Jim raised his bow, took a deep breath, aimed, then let it fly.


	3. Chapter 3: Promise (Pepperony)

**A/N. Hi guys :) Here's the Pepperony one. Naturally it's longer because Tony's in it xP That's apparently normal for me... he keeps popping up everywhere! Anyway, here's their POV on children. Enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers. I own any and all OCs you may or may not see.**

Promise – Pepper X Tony

"But Pepper…!" Tony whined, following her out of the elevator and into the lobby. His girlfriend was dressed in a burgundy business suit with a blue tooth in her ear and a thick manila folder in hand. Her heels clacked against the tile floor of the Tower as she marched just ahead of him, shoulders back, chin up, and gaze straight.

"Mr. Stark, I've told you a thousand times that I am just too busy. If you want one, go ahead, but I can't take part in caring for it."

"Aw, come on, Pep. They're adorable!"

She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Not even. They drool everywhere, they make weird noises at the oddest times, and there's just… I don't know Tony."

"Aw… please What if I told you I would do all the work?"

Pepper paused, one step away from the front door that sensed her presence and opened anyway. She turned towards the billionaire. "I told you, go ahead. But I don't have time!"

"Then _make_ time. Heck, _I'll_ make your time."

"That doesn't even make sense!

"Whatever!"

"For the last time, we are not getting a dog!" She turned and walked out the door, only to ram into someone and drop all of her papers. Tony ran out to help her as she and the boy (no older than twelve or thirteen) bent down to pick up the very large contract for SI.

"Sorry," he mumbled, shuffling papers together. He handed them back to Pepper and they all stood up.

The tween had wild, sandy, blonde hair that covered his eyes and freckles dusting his cheeks. He had chapped lips and shockingly vibrant green eyes. He wore wrinkled clothes that looked like they hadn't been washed in a while and was a little bit shorter then Tony. He hid behind his bangs and stared at his feet.

Noticing this, Tony realized that the kid probably didn't even know who he was talking to. "Hey kid," he called. The boy looked up and gasped.

"You're… you're…" he seemed at a loss for words as he stood before the "invincible" Iron Man and his wife.

Tony smirked and stuffed one hand in his jeans pocket. "I am Iron Man," he stated in his imitation of his confession to the press all those years ago.

The boy squeaked. Pepper smiled warmly at him. "I'm sorry, that was completely my fault. I wasn't looking where I was going," she apologized. She observed him with curious eyes and tilted her head the side slightly. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?"

He blushed and hid behind his hair again, shuffling his feet awkwardly. "Uh… it's free period." It was obvious that he was lying; from the way he twiddled his thumbs to his shifty eyes.

Pepper and Tony each raised an eyebrow in that way that they do. The philanthropist was the one who spoke next. "Lies!" He pointed at this child's chest. "You can't lie to me, kid. Why aren't you in school? We won't bust you for ditching if that's what you're afraid of."

The pre-adolescent opened his mouth to respond when a harsh shout cut him off. "WHERE ARE YOU, YOU LITTLE SHIT?!" The boy's eyes widened to the size of saucers and he dove between the couple, hiding behind them just as a tall, clean-shaven, angry-looking business man stopped in front of them, panting from what was obviously a chase. He glared at the kid hiding behind the two CEOs. "You get out of there right now or… I'll…" he slowly looked up to see two very famous and rather upset faces staring at him. "… er, ground you," he finished lamely. Pepper narrowed her eyes as the man hastened to make himself seem like a better person and stood up straight, raking a hand through his gelled hair. "Mr. and Mrs. Stark," he didn't get any farther than that before Tony exploded.

"What the hell do you think you're going? You've scared this kid to death so much that he's skipping school just to avoid you! I don't know what you're even doing at his school, but I'm not sure I even want to know!"

The man struggled to come up with anything to say, but Pepper didn't even give him a chance to do so. She marched up to him, looked him in the eye (thank you stiletto heels…) and gave him her best glare, accompanied by her "pissed off" voice. "Tell me you are not that kid's father, that you are not neglecting him in favour of work, that you did not just call him a 'little shit', and that you haven't abused him before – verbally or physically. Look me in the eye and tell me that."

He opened his mouth as if to answer before promptly shutting it. The full force of her glare hit him and simply slouched and walked away.

The boy was slack-jawed. Once his "father" was out of sight, he stepped out from his hiding spot behind Tony's legs. The next thing he did caught them both off guard. He threw his arms around Pepper's waist and hugged her tightly, burying his face in her blazer. She was a little shocked but she gently wrapped the arm not currently holding a giant folder to rub his back soothingly. When he let go sheepishly, she sent him a small smile. Maybe he wasn't quite twelve yet… perhaps a little younger.

She looked to her husband to see that he was staring at her with a thoughtful look on his face. That might not be good… She wondered what he was thinking so deeply about before shrugging it off – probably for the better.

"So what's your name, Sweetie?" she asked the child.

"Mark," he replied, sounding more confident than before.

"Cool," Tony spoke up, stepping a bit closer, "So now that you're psychologically an orphan, how about you come on inside for an after-school snack?"

Mark shook his head violently. "Oh no, I have to go back."

"What?" Husband and wife chorused.

"I have to stay with my sister. It's almost the end of the day. She doesn't like walking home alone."

Pepper and Tony shared a knowing look. "Well," began the redhead after a silent and mutual agreement between the two, "Let's go get her and bring her with us."

Mark's eyes widened before he smiled. It soon fell off his face, turning him into the introvert they had seen before. "Um, my mother used to say that we shouldn't ever leave with strangers."

The duo caught the past tense and shared yet another look. Tony put a hand on Mark's shoulder, causing the boy to jump before looking up hesitantly. "Kid, you know who we are. We aren't strangers. I promise that you and your sister will be safe with us and I mean, come on. I'm a super hero! You can't not trust a super hero."

The blonde glanced back and forth between the two adults before him, observing how sincere they seemed to be. Eventually, he softened. "You promise?"

Tony smiled, his eyes crinkling. "We promise."

Pepper immediately dialed Happy to come and pick them up and before long, the four of them were in a stretch limo and headed for Mark's school. They arrived just as the bell rang. Before long, children spilled out of the doors and Mark leapt from the car, leaving the celebrities inside and away from most of the attention.

"Lindy!" he shouted. A little girl who appeared about six years old ran to him and threw her arms around his legs.

"Mark! Where were you? I thought… I thought…" she looked to be on the verge of tears.

He hushed her quietly. "We're going to go with some other people besides father today, okay? I trust them. They'll keep us sage."

She nodded and took his hand.

Pepper sat at the bar counter and supped her white hot chocolate, wrapping her hands around the warm Stark Industries mug she had dug up from one of the many cupboards in the kitchen of the Avengers Tower. She sat alone and in the exceptionally dimmed lights, courtesy of JARVIS. It was late at night, just past midnight, and she felt exhausted but couldn't seem to fall asleep. Her mind was too stuffed with thoughts that encircled the two children who had just waltzed into her life.

She set down her drink and sighed, tying the knot of her robe tighter. Just this morning she was telling Tony about how she had not time for a dog, let alone children. But now here she was, thinking about adopting them. It was unfathomable. But she wanted Mark and Lindy. And they weren't babies and they wouldn't crawl or drool or cry – much. She was getting too old to go through her own pregnancy anyway. Not that she was too old yet, she still had a good dozen years left before menopause (probably more) but still… almost forty is pretty old considering the "norm".

She heard footsteps behind her but didn't pay them any attention – until Tony's arms snaked around her waist and a goatee covered face was nuzzling into her neck. "Mmm… Pepper," he mumbled.

She chuckled, placing her hands on his hair and his around her stomach as she leaned into his chest. "What are you doing up?" she whispered, eyes drifting closed at the softness of his touch.

"…nightmare."

She craned her neck so that she could see his face. "What?"

"I have them whenever you're not there."

"Oh Tony…" she caressed his right cheek and kissed his jaw lightly. "I'm sorry."

He took her hand and pressed it to his lips. "Don't be. I'll live. So why are _you_ up?"

She shrugged. "I've just got a lot on my mind, I guess."

"Bullshit."

"Excuse me?"

"Tell me the real reason."

"It's true!"

"Well then tell me what's on your mind."

Pepper bit her lip. She had _no_ idea how Tony would react. He'd wanted a _dog,_ not two children. She didn't want him to think that she was a hypocrite. Of course, if he had wanted to get a cat she might have been more inclined… anyway, maybe he was right. She had to _make_ time to do the things she wants. So maybe she could make time for a family? Steve, Clint, and Natasha all had kids. Maybe it was their turn.

Noticing her anxiety and hesitation, Tony spun her stool around and braced both hands on the counter on either side of her, blocking her exits. The way he did this wasn't rough, but gently and pleading. "Pep, honey, tell me what's wrong and I'll make it go away."

"But that's the thing, I don't want it to go away."

Tony furrowed his eyebrows. "Then what do you want to do with it?"

"I want to keep it… them, legally."

"Mark and Lindy?"

"Yeah."

"So you mean… to adopt them?"

"If you're okay with it…" she looked down at the ground as if she were ashamed. Tony cupped her chin with his index finger and thumb and quickly brought her lips to his, kissing her thoroughly.

He pulled away and leaned his forehead against hers; both were out of breath and smiling. "That sounds like a great idea."

She looked up at him in surprise. "Really? Are you sure? We only just met them and they still have a father that might not want to give them up and they themselves might not want to leave not to mention they might have to change schools and live with all the other Avengers and the money-"

"Which we have."

"-and the changes and everything else! Are you sure-?"

He silenced her with another kiss. They broke apart some time later. "The only thing I've been more sure about, is how much I love you." Their lips met again and this time, they didn't stop.


	4. Chapter 4: Positive (Bretty)

**A/N. Hi :) So here's the Bruce/Betty on kids oneshot. Don't hate me by the end. I honestly think this is what would happen. I imagine they're in their bedroom in the Tower. Enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers.**

**POSITIVE – BruceXBetty**

Betty stared at the pregnancy test in her shaking hands. Just a little longer, and then she would see the sign. She had been having morning sickness for a week straight now and her period was late. She had cravings and she felt hormonal all the time. It was almost a given that she was pregnant, but she wanted to make sure.

Something was happening! The screen was fading into… a positive sign. She was pregnant. Betty Banner was pregnant with Bruce Banner's child. She put a hand to her stomach. There was a living thing inside of her. It was kind of disturbing and exciting.

She didn't really know how to feel. Maybe it just hadn't sunk in yet. Mostly she was apprehensive about Bruce's reaction. She had no doubt that he would freak.

She dropped the test into the garbage bin and stood shakily to her feet. On second thought, she grabbed the test and pocketed it. With that done, she slowly pulled open the bathroom door and peeked out. She didn't hear anything at first, but then the sound of someone sipping tea and rustling the newspaper reached her ears. She took a deep breath.

Filling herself with courage, Betty made her way down the hallway and poked her head around the corner. Bruce was sitting at the kitchen counter with a tea and newspaper. He was shirtless and wearing plaid pyjama pants with bare feet and thin-rimmed glasses perched on his nose.

She took a deep breath (again) and made herself visible. Her socked feet padded against the hardwood floor as she approached. When he heard her footsteps, he looked up.

He smiled at her. "Good morning Sweetie," he greeted as he stood up to kiss her cheek and then sit back down again with one arm around her waist. When she didn't answer him, he took a better look at her face and frowned. "Are you okay?"

It took a few seconds before she shrugged. She was getting increasingly paler by the second.

"Betty?" He was worrying now. He stood and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. "Hmm… you're warm, but you don't have a fever. Is something wrong?"

She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Bruce became more anxious the longer the silence lasted. However, his patience was rewarded when she finally answered him.

"I'm pregnant."

The world stopped turning. "What?"

"I'm pregnant."

"… are you sure?"

She nodded. No noise was made. The news hung in the air for a little while, slowly sinking in. Bruce sat back down and didn't move for several minutes.

"Bruce…" Betty called after a while, "What are you thinking?"

The doctor rubbed his eyes and removed his glasses. "I honestly don't know. There are so many jumbled words, phrases, and questions all mixed into my head that I can't understand any of them. It's like a piece of paper that's been written on fifty times without erasing. And one of them is green."

He sighed tiredly. Betty moved forward and placed one hand on his shoulder with her other on her stomach. "And… what does the green writing say?"

"He doesn't understand what's going on; why I'm so scared."

"Why are you scared?"

His head snapped up and he looked at her with disbelief. "Why am I scared? WHY am I SCARED?" he rose to his feet, shrugging off her hand. "That fetus has my DNA; has HIS DNA. This has never happened before! We have no idea what that kind of mix could do to you! Our baby has gamma radiation in his genes and he's barely a few weeks conceived! That thing could kill you from the inside!"

"That _thing_ is our baby! How dare you refer to him an 'it'!"

"Betty… we have to get rid of him while he's still in his early stages."

She gasped and stepped away from her husband, wrapping her arms around her stomach. "NO! I won't let you!"

"Betty…"

"NO. You listen to me, Bruce Banner. I am NOT giving up this child to abortion OR adoption no matter what you say. I will die before I willingly abandon my baby. You can help me with it or you can leave like every other asshole on this planet!"

Bruce sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sweetie, you know I love you, but I don't want to risk your life to give birth to what might be a monster."

"He is not a monster."

"Right, and neither am I."

"You're not." She softened. "And neither is our baby. _Your_ son or daughter." She grabbed his hand and placed it against her stomach. "Your kid is going to love you and look up to you and learn from you. Do you really want to take away someone's life?"

Bruce grabbed her hand and pressed it to his lips. "Of course not, but what choice do we have? I couldn't live with myself if you died because of something I created."

"Without me, there would be no baby. We both created him."

"You're only making this harder, Betty."

"I'm not giving up on my son or daughter." She stared him in the eyes firmly, determination set in her eyes.

He sighed. "Well there's no way in hell I'm leaving you again. Not after last time. I love you too much."

"Oh Bruce…" Betty was reduced to tears. Stupid hormones. "I love you too."

He bent down and kissed her stomach. "And I feel like… I might love you as well."

She smiled. "I'm positive you do."


	5. Chapter 5: Quarter (Thane)

**A/N. Hi :D Two updates in one day? WHAT? Haha, anyway, I've decided to make this a prompt fic now that I've done all the couples oneshots that I wanted. I can do all the kid oneshots that you want. Send as many as you want but they must a) involve the children mentioned in these oneshots already posted b) be in the same universe as this one c) make sense and not crossover with the real world or another fandom unless it's MARVEL - then I will consider it. That's all, hope you guys are interested! Enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers.**

**Quarter – ThorXJane**

"My Lady Jane?" Thor whispered in her ear from his position behind his love, arms wrapped around her middle with the two of them lying sideways on the couch; spooning. The God had originally been unfamiliar with the term, but Jane had been more than happy to show him. So there they were, spooning on her ugly blue couch that she'd brought with her from New Mexico to NYC when she moved into the Tower.

She hummed in response and turned her head towards him. "Yes, Thor?"

"I desire a quarter," he said shyly, avoiding looking at her and instead favouring the popcorn ceiling of her bedroom.

Jane turned her entire body to look at him with confusion written all over her face. "… why?" she asked, dragging out the "y".

Thor shrugged. "I do not want to wait too long."

Jane furrowed her eyebrows. "Wait for what?"

He caressed the side of her head with his big hand, pressing her hair to her cheek gently. "For you to leave."

She placed both of her hands on top of his and her gaze softened. "I'm never leaving you."

Thor chuckled with no humour. "Oh Jane, tis not your choice to make."

She sat up abruptly, falling off the couch in the process with a small cry of, "ah!"

"Jane!" he leaned over and stared at his fallen girlfriend. "Are you alright?"

She ignored the question. "What do you mean it's not my choice?" the astrophysicist exclaimed. "Whose is it? Yours? Are you planning on leaving again?"

Thor winced at the word, "again" and quickly attempted to hush her. "Shh, shh Jane. Everything is fine. I do not plan on leaving nor is it my decision either. If t'were, I would have you for eternity."

"Well then… my love life is my own decision. I control it."

"But you do not control the end."

"What end? There is no end for us… unless you _want_ one?" she turned sheepish and started to close in on herself. Seeing this, Thor made haste to grab one of her hands and tilt her chin upward so that her eyes gazed into his.

"My sweet Lady Jane, I wish for all nine worlds that there would no end to us."

"Then… why…?"

"I am immortal, Jane, and you are human. Our fates are intertwined for as long as you live and breathe. But after…"

"You will live on without me," she muttered. Tears stung the corners of her eyes as she came to this realization. Thor would live for a very long time, in all his glory, while she would wither away and die. Of course, she'd known this all along, but had never really _clicked _until now.

After her, Thor would move on. The Earth would continue to turn with or without her. Asgard would still need a Prince in sixty years or so. He would leave and find someone else, she had no doubt. Maybe not right away, but eventually. It was inevitable.

She sucked in a deep breath, taking it all in. And then she exhaled. What could she do? The only thing she _could_ do: accept it.

"And what does all of this have to do with a quarter?" There would be time to ponder and cry about it later, but for now she simply wished to postpone those thoughts as much as she could.

"An offspring would allow me something to remember you by. And perhaps, they would be immortal like me."

Now she was more confused than ever. "Wait, wait, wait. You want… a baby?"

Thor nodded, relieved that she finally understood his words. "Yes, before you are taken away from me." He slunk down to the floor beside her and gripped her waist possessively. He buried his face in her hair and sniffed her unique scent.

She sighed. "Again, what does this have to do with a quarter?"

"Tis our offspring," he responded warily, unsure as to why a person as smart as her didn't understand what he was saying.

Jane, for the life of her, couldn't figure out what he meant. He demi-god of a boyfriend couldn't just-? Wait. _Click_. "Oh!" she exclaimed, "Thor, who told you this terminology?"

"Friend Tony. Why do you ask?"

Jane sighed. "Just because you are a demi-god, does not mean that you can call our child a quarter-god. Or a quarter. In America, a quarter is a coin worth twenty-five cents or one fourth of something. Tony referred to our baby as a quarter because he/she would be one fourth (one quarter) Asgardian and three quarters Midgardian."

"So… I have been asking you for money?" he confirmed. She nodded. "I shall rephrase my query." He took both of her hands in his and looked deep into her eyes. "Jane Foster, will you bear my child?"

She blinked back tears. This man (demi-God)'s question proved his absolute commitment to her and her planet. She bit her lip and nodded, a smile creeping its way onto her face.

Thor grinned victoriously and crushed her in a hug. "Thank you, Lady Jane. You cannot even begin to comprehend the meaning behind your words." He kissed the top of her head.

"But on Earth, we have a tradition before a couple has children. It's rather lengthy and not everyone does it but… I want to."

"Well then what is this Midgardian custom? I promise I shall do my best to fulfill your wish of such custom."

She bit her lip again. "It's… we… we get married." She blushed profusely.

Thor raised both eyebrows. "Tis a custom on my planet as well, but I am afraid that I lack the knowledge of Midgardian details." He shrugged. "So you must tell me what this entails."

"Umm… well, it all starts with a ring…"


	6. Chapter 6: When A Boy And A Girl

**A/N. I'm back :) Thank you to Second Daughter of Eve for the prompt of Bruce and his daughter having, "The Talk" and making it awkward xP Hope you and any other readers enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I do not own the Avengers. I own the Avengers' children though. That doesn't sound right... I own my OCs :P**

**When a boy and a girl love each other very much… - BruceXBetty**

Brianna Banner exited the elevator onto her floor of Avengers Tower with a water bottle in her hands. She had long dark hair that waved like her father's with gorgeous green eyes that matched the Hulk's skin colour. She was fairly pale, like her mother, and tall and lean. She was thirteen years old and going to start her last year of middle school in the fall.

She walked into her bedroom and made her way to the attached bathroom to shower after a long session at the gym with Alaina and Jim. The two of them had been teaching her a few moves they'd learned from Auntie Natasha and Uncle Clint without the knowledge of said Aunt and Uncle.

After her shower, Brianna made her way back up to the lounge to… well, lounge. She plopped down on the extremely long white sectional that Uncle Tony had bought when he realized just how many people were going to start living at the Tower. It was HUGE and wound almost all the way around the living room part of the lounge in a giant semi-circle. She sat dead center in front of the hovering flat screen TV.

"Jarvis, TV on channel two hundred please."

"Yes, Miss Banner."

"Thank you."

The television flickered to life and she smiled. Her favourite show was on. A few minutes into it, her dad, Bruce, walked in looking exhausted. He'd probably just come from the lab with Uncle Tony, Aunt Jane, and her mom: Betty.

"Hey Dad," she greeted with a small wave.

"Hello," he called back and kissed the top of her head in passing.

"How was work?"

He chuckled. She always referred to his time in the lab as "work" because he didn't' have an actual job unless you counted being an Avenger – which he was getting a little old for. "Long," he replied. "How was your workout?"

"Tiring."

"Mmhm." He chugged a glass of water from the tap before zooming in on the television. He narrowed his eyes. "What are you watching?"

"Attraction."

"And… what's that?"

She shrugged. "I don't want to get into it. It's kind of like a soap opera I guess, but with more explosions and gore."

"Hm." He trudged over and gently sat down next to her. He watched the TV for a few minutes, occasionally running his fingers through his almost all grey hair. "Are you sure you're old enough to watch this?"

She rolled her eyes. "Dad, I'm thirteen. I'm old enough to watch a lot of things."

Damn those PG-13 movies. He cleared his throat. "Well, this show seems to have… some mature content in it."

She tilted her head in confusion just like her mother did. "What do you mean?"

He coughed. This was going to be awkward. "Well, it has… you know…"

"Sex?" He stared at her incredulously. She shrugged. "Word goes around at school. You can't expect me to not know what it is."

"Uh… I… um…" he stuttered. He could feel the Hulk stirring inside of him. Who was telling his daughter about SEX?!

She rolled her eyes. "Don't worry Dad, I don't know any of the minor details. Just the basics."

"The… basics?!"

"Yeah. Like how the guy's pe-"

"OKAY I GET IT! But even if you DO know the basics, I think it might be time to have… 'the talk'," he suggested, putting air quotes to further his point.

She groaned and threw her head back on the couch. "Not 'the talk'…"

He nodded. "Yes, 'the talk.' Now sit up straight."

She sighed. "Can it at least wait until the show is over? There's like five minutes left!"

"Nope. We're doing this now so we can get it over with. I don't want to be giving this talk either."

"Fine." She pouted and raised her head from the couch to look at him. "Where do you want to start?"

He played with the cuffs of his lab coat nervously. "Um, well, how about… abstinence?"

She tilted her head again. "What's abstinence?"

_Oh boy_. "Well, it's when you refrain from having… you know, sex."

"Oh."

"So… you should do that, because… sex is… well it's not _bad_, but it's not _good,_ not that it's not good in the way that it's pleasurable but uh…" The elevator doors opened. Steve stepped inside with his daughter Alaina. He heard the word sex, covered her ears and backed up again. Bruce sighed. It seemed that he was all alone on this one. He knew for a fact that he was beet red and fidgeting anxiously. "What I'm trying to say is that… well, you're not old enough for sex."

"I know."

"You have to be married in order to- Wait, you know?"

"Duh. I don't even have my period yet. Of course I'm not old enough for sex. People have sex in high school."

_Lord help me._ "Uh, well. You shouldn't have sex then either."

"What? Why not?"

Oh my God this was the most embarrassing conversation he'd ever had in his entire life. "Because you're still a teenager and teenagers tend to be… reckless. Especially when it comes to… er, sex. So um… wait until after you graduate, okay? Promise me?"

She eyed him warily. "Um, okay. I promise."

He blinked in surprise. "Really? Just like that?"

"Yeah. Why? Should I be protesting?"

"No! I mean, no. Just… just remember. Abstinence." He patted her head softly before rushing out of there faster than Speedy Gonzalez.

Brianna turned back to the TV and threw her arms in the air. "I missed the ending! Now I'll never know if Josh slept with Katie or killed her!"

Off to the side, where she'd been sitting all along, Betty sipped her tea with an amused smirk on her face.


	7. Chapter 7: Nightmare

**A/N. Hi :) It's been a little while hasn't it? Sorry. Anyway, here's a drabble requested by xXMidnightBloom about Mark and Lindy having nightmares and Tony, being well versed in having nightmares himself, helps them deal. Enjoy! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the Avengers, however Mark and Lindy are my own creations. As are Alaina and Jim.**

_Nudge._

…

_Nudge. Nudge._ "Mr. Tony? Mrs. Pepper?" a soft voice whispered into the night. Lindy cradled her doll to her chest and nudged the billionaires again. She sniffled. "Please wake up." She nudged a little harder and Tony shot up like a rocket. Lindy screamed and fell off the bed from shock and fright.

"Who's there? Where's Pepper? What?" Tony whipped his head left and right as his heart raced. He turned to look at the woman next to him and immediately relaxed some. He grabbed her hand. Pepper was okay. She hadn't been taken from him again. Everything was fine.

That was when he noticed the little sobs and ragged breathing coming from the floor. He cautiously leaned over the bed and spotted Lindy, crying and squeezing her doll so tightly he thought it might pop. He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Lindy?" The little girl looked up at him with tears cascading down her face. "Did I scare you?"

She nodded. He opened his arms as a silent invitation and she scrambled up onto his tall, king-sized bed and threw her arms around him. Because of her tiny stature at six years old, her arms couldn't wrap themselves all the way around his torso. Tony hesitantly and gently placed his arms around her too.

Mark and Lindy had moved into the Tower about a week ago after a several month long custody battle with their father. The Starks had evidently won. Tony and Pepper were now legally someone's parents. The realization had sent them both through a loop. Neither of them had been prepared for such sudden parenthood. But they both knew that they wanted it. They just didn't think it would happen so soon.

Still so unused to having kids, a _daughter_, none the less, Tony was somewhat unaccustomed to what to do in situations like these. He hadn't expected Lindy's ability to trust so easily and her lack of acknowledgement to personal space. She clung to him or Pepper the majority of the time, especially when around the other Avengers.

She and her brother had been introduced to her new "Aunts" and "Uncles" and "Cousins" but she had been exceedingly shy. Alaina was two and Jim was only one. They were cute, sure, but they couldn't talk very well yet so she stuck to her brother and her new "parents" like glue.

Mark was very similar. He was quite wary of the others despite his knowledge of their super hero alter egos. He said that he trusted them but that he didn't think of them as family. It was understandable. It went unspoken that everyone hoped that would change over time.

Lindy sobbed into his shirt. Right. Little girl crying in his room at three something in the morning. Focus, Tony. He shook his head free of as much exhaustion as he could before addressing his new "daughter" again.

"Lindy, honey, is there a reason you came to our room at this time of night?" He rubbed her back soothingly while she cried. He hoped to God that he hadn't been the one to scare her this much so as to cry.

She pulled away just enough to look up at his face. She sniffled. "Yeah." When it became obvious that she wasn't going to elaborate, he realized he may need to push a little further. That, or wake Pepper. He went with the former.

"You wanna tell me what that reason is?"

She sobbed and clutched her doll for dear life, one of the only things she got to keep from her old house. "N-nightmare," she whispered.

Tony's heart broke. He knew exactly what nightmares felt like. He could totally sympathize. He took a deep breath. Okay. This was somewhat familiar territory. He could do this.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head no.

"If I guess, will you tell me?"

She began biting at her nails. Tony frowned. He was going to have to break her out of that habit. He gently pried her fingers from her mouth. She eventually looked back into his eyes and nodded, her blonde curls bouncing.

"Was it about your dad?"

She nodded again.

"Did he… hurt you?"

Affirmative.

Tony felt his blood begin to boil. "Was it because of something you did?"

Lindy seemed to think about it for a minute before she shrugged. "Kind of."

"Was it because you came to me and Pepper?"

She nodded again. Damn. He was too good at this. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Apparently good in this context because he now understood why she was crying.

"It's okay sweetheart, you're in the safest place in the world. This Tower has the most advanced technological security in the world. Your dad can't come and hurt you. Or your brother," he added as an afterthought. "You have an entire team of super heroes ready to defend you if they come. We'll protect you."

"But I don't want you to get hurt," she mumbled into his chest.

He swore all of his walls just damn imploded and he crumbled at her feet. This little girl had a lot more power than she knew. She had him wrapped around her little finger. No one ever told him that he would feel like this if he had kids. If he had known beforehand he probably would have rejected the idea.

_Too late now_, he thought as he cradled her to his chest. "We won't, Lindy. Your dad isn't strong enough to take on one super hero, let alone six of them and their very angry girlfriends."

She giggled a little just as the door opened automatically. "Lindy?" whispered a voice in the darkness of the room. Tony looked over to his doorway to see Mark, standing there in his new pyjamas Pepper had bought him and looking around wildly for his sister. If there was one thing you had to know about Mark, it was that he was extremely protective of his little sister.

"Hi Mark," the little girl called back.

"What are you doing in here?"

"I had a nightmare."

Mark didn't open his mouth for a little while as he contemplated this. Tony sat back awkwardly, not really knowing what to do with the adopted daughter in his lap. Eventually, Mark looked down at his toes. "Me too."

Tony opened his left arm towards his "son" without even thinking about it. "You wanna join our puppy pile of I'm-not-too-old-or-too-cool-for-this-awesomeness?" 

Mark snorted and rolled his eyes but jogged forward and sat on the bed. "I am too old for this, just so you know."

"I won't tell anyone if you won't."

Mark's eyes flicked over to Pepper's sleeping form disbelievingly. That woman had been dead tired when she fell asleep that evening. It was understandable why she was still asleep right now, through all of this.

"Not even Pepper," Tony amended.

Mark nodded and snuggled into Tony's left side while Lindy did the same with his left. Tony sat back against the headboard and closed his eyes. This was not comfortable at all but if Mark and Lindy were happy then he'd sit there all night. He sighed and drifted off to sleep.

Pepper awoke to an armful of someone who was a lot smaller and more feminine than Tony. She opened her eyes to see Lindy curled up beneath her arm and sleeping softly with a doll huddled to her chest. The CEO didn't dare move as her eyes roamed the rest of the bed. She spotted her husband who was wide awake and sitting up with his arm around Mark, who was snoring none too loudly with his face pressed into a pillow between his head and Tony's chest.

The billionaire shrugged before mouthing, "nightmare" to her and she nodded in understanding. She tightened her hold on Lindy before kissing the top of her head lovingly. Lindy smiled in her sleep.


	8. Chapter 8: Mom Knows All

**A/N. Hello :) Here's another drabble for you requested by xXMidnightBloom about Jim and his mom, Natasha, seeing as she wasn't in the first Jim-centric one. Enjoy :D**

**I don't own the Avengers.**

MOM KNOWS ALL

Jim bent over backwards to avoid the swinging kick aimed at his torso. He righted himself and lunged at his opponent, wrapping his arms around her neck in a tackle. It didn't exactly work the way he planned. The woman grabbed his forearms and turned, shifting her weight so that she held him off the ground on her back and grunted before flipping him over her head and onto the ground.

Jim grunted in pain but didn't let go, using her arms to spin himself around and kicked her legs out from under her. She collapsed in front of him and he yanked her elbows forward. He wrapped his legs around them before pushing off the ground and flipping himself forward, keeping her arms in an iron grip and twisting them painfully before landing on her back.

She cried out and Jim smirked, thinking he'd won. Just then, two long legs popped into his peripheral vision from behind him and trapped his head between her shins, squeezing. He let go of her to try and instinctively pry them off, giving her the upper hand. Her powerful legs tossed him aside and she slithered to her feet like a snake while he recuperated.

He shoulder-rolled backward into a crouch before pushing himself into a standing fighting stance. She cocked her head, observing him. It reminded him of an owl. He ran forward and slid on the ground, gliding between her legs and grabbing her knees as he went. She flipped forward but caught herself on her hands, landing in a front handspring and whirling on her heel at inhuman speed.

He rolled over before doing a version of the worm cut in half. He rolled all his weight onto his torso and hands before pushing his feet into the air high enough to step on the ground and shift the rest of his body weight up so that he was standing again. It was a move his dad had taught him.

As soon as he was up she was on him. Her legs were around his throat and her whole body was spinning around him and her thighs moved and twirled and then he was on the ground with her on top of him. He coughed as her weight crushed his chest.

"Hey Mom?" he called.

"Yeah?" she responded without taking her eyes off of him.

He landed a powerful blow to her gut and she doubled over, giving him the advantage for long enough to shove her off of him. He shot to his feet like a spring. So did she.

"How do you know when a girl likes you?" he asked.

Natasha swung her right arm towards his temple and he blocked it just as her left arm came from the other side. He blocked that one too. Her punches and hits and kicks came in quick succession and he blocked them all with as much speed as he could muster. Finally an opportunity came when he had both of her arms blocked at the same time. He used this little window to bring his leg up and kick her in the chest, sending her staggering backwards a few steps. She coughed but straightened, wiping sweat from her chin.

"What brought this on?" she asked before running up to him, using his thigh as a step ladder to keep herself up long enough for her other leg to come up swinging. The top of her bare foot smacked into her son's chin. His head snapped back as she leaped backward in the air, performing a flip before landing in a crouch a few feet away from him. Jim grabbed his head and yanked it to the side, cracking it in several places. "Don't do that Honey, you'll get arthritis," Natasha advised before kicking his legs out from under him.

He came crashing down with an, "oof!" before she was straddling him again, this time with his arms pinned. He rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Mom. But to answer your question," he moved his head from a blow she had been about to deliver, "I think… well I think there's this girl that might have a crush on me."

The punch next to his face was harder than before, he swore. "And who is this girl?"

"You don't need to know." He head bashed her began squirming out of her hold and rolling a good distance away, sweat trickling down his face and neck.

Natasha narrowed her eyes and stood up as well, rubbing her forehead. "Well if it's who I think it is, then it's pretty obvious."

A cute blush spread across the teen's face, heat invading his cheeks. "Just answer the question!" he barked. In a lot of ways, he reminded Natasha of his father.

She leaped at him and he ducked, somersaulting forward while she landed in a dive roll over him. They turned to face each other. "Well, you know I don't have much experience in the romance department," she stated before ducking Jim's spinning hook kick, "but if you really want an answer then I'd say to look for any signs of blushing around you or embarrassment when it comes to physical contact." She ducked under another kick but grabbed his leg mid-swing and stood to her full height, pushing with all her might.

Jim cried out, "Woah!" before he lost his balance and was sent tumbling backward. He managed to salvage it into a backward roll into a crouch. He looked like his mother when he did that. He pushed himself to his feet.

"If she trusts you with a lot of stuff, like, personal stuff, then that might be another sign." He swung a punch at her head which she blocked and twisted her body so that her back was pressed against his chest. Without releasing her hold on his fist, she elbowed him with her other arm before stomping on his foot and shoving him backward. He stumbled and clutched his side but didn't fall. Natasha kept speaking as she turned around. "If she flutters her eyelashes at you or if you find hidden meanings behind her words, that works too."

She ran at him and jumped in the air, spinning sideways before kicking him with her left leg and then continued twirling to kick his jaw with her right leg right after. He was left sprawled on the ground. She straddled him backwards and grabbed his ankle, pulling it towards her.

He groaned and tapped the matt twice. "I give! I give!"

She let go and he sighed. She stood up and held out her hand for him to take. He accepted it and she pulled him to his feet. She smirked at him while he just scowled. "You're getting better."

He grumbled to himself about losing _again_. If only he knew how many times it took his father to beat her for the first time. Even in her late thirties, Natasha Romanoff was still the deadly Black Widow she had been when she was younger.

"Thanks," he mumbled before grabbing a towel and throwing it over his shoulder. He whipped out his water bottle and drank a large swig. "Good fight. But I will beat you one day," he promised cheekily.

"In your dreams."

He snorted and stepped over the rope of the boxing ring in the Avengers gym. He made his way to the elevator and Natasha took the moment to observe him. He had dirty blonde hair, like his father (miraculously, the dominant red headed gene had been… well, dominated) but in the sunlight you could see tints of his mother's fiery red hair colour. His eyes were a stormy grey, also like his father. He had a light dusting of freckles across his nose and cheeks and was tan and muscular from archery and sparring lessons with his parents and occasionally Uncle Steve. He was sixteen years old and around five foot nine. He was taller than both of his parents but not by much.

As he walked out of the gym, Natasha called out to him. "Go get 'em! And tell Alaina I said hi."

Jim's face burned as he felt the heat of embarrassment rise in his cheeks _again_. He must have somehow inherited it from Uncle Steve and Uncle Bruce. They tended to blush a lot. His master assassin parents _never_ blushed. He hunched his shoulders. _Crap, crap, crap SHE KNOWS! SHE FRIGGIN' KNOWS!_

He sped up his pace and walked out on a very amused Natasha.

**A/N. So how'd I do with the fighting? I've always wondered if I was any good at writing down choreography for those kinds of scenes. Let me know I did if you want to via review :D Next up is Jane and Thor's child so stay tuned! ;)**


	9. Chapter 9: The Mightiest Asgardian Baby

**A/N. Hi guys :) As promised, here is Jane and Thor's baby, Thomas! :D These are his first steps, yay! Full of adorableness xP Thank you xXMidnightBloom for your prompt! Now just so none of you are confused, I am giving Steve a son after Alaina whose name is James Owen Rogers. He is three at this point and I am planning a drabble for him later. Also, if the ages confuse you, I'll try and fix that right now. So Mark is six years older than Lindy, who is six years older than Alaina, who is one year older than Jim, who is two years older than Brianna, who is three years older than James, who is one year older than Thomas. Did that help or are you more confused than ever? Would it be easier for me to post all of their ages before each drabble? Let me know via review :D Enjoy!**

Thomas Vidar Odinson sat in his playpen happily with bubbles foaming at his mouth. Excited squeals and giggles echoed throughout the room he shared with his parents. His mother, Jane, smiled and cooed at him from above and he squealed again, waving his arms around randomly. He held a doughnut shaped toy in his right hand that went flying across the room into the wall when his grip wasn't adjusted accordingly as his arms flailed. The toy slammed into the wall with a loud CRACK and lightning flashed in the sky above.

Jane stared at her son in awe before turning her gaze to the giant dent in her wall. Woah. "Thor!" she yelled immediately. The Thunder God himself came rushing in from the other room.

"What is it? Are you both alright?" he knelt down beside his wife and child.

She shook her head. "Thomas… he's so… powerful. Look." She pointed to the crater in their wall and Thor's eyes widened.

"He is truly my son and is no doubt Asgardian." A smile graced his features. "He will be immortal, like myself."

Jane grinned as well. "That's great!"

"Come here, Vidar." Thor had insisted on giving his son an Asgardian name to use when not on Midgard. He stood up over the playpen and placed his hands beneath his son's armpits, easily lifting him up and out. He balanced the one year old boy on his hip as Thomas reached his father's large, bulky fingers to play with and probably suck on.

Thor laughed. "Not today, my son. Perhaps at a time when I have washed my hands."

"Sit him down, Hun. I think he wants to play peek-a-boo with his mommy."

"Of course." Thor set him down in his lap across from the Lady Jane as he sat cross-legged. He began to bounce the baby boy on his knee and Thomas giggled uncontrollably, flailing his arms and legs while Thor kept a hold on his torso at all times.

His bubbly laughter never ceased to make anyone smile. Soon, Thomas began to pry clumsily at Thor's fingers. The demigod laughed and slowly let go. To everyone's surprise, the baby slid off Thor's knee to his feet. Husband and wife stared at him in shock as he wobbled unsteadily. He looked up at his mommy before giggling and taking a step forward. Jane gasped. Thomas took another couple of rushed steps before falling into her arms and giggling again.

He looked up at her with innocent, beautiful, blue eyes just like his father's. Tears threatened to spill as she grabbed his tiny hands and stood him back up again. Mother and father continued to watch in absolute wonder as Thomas bounced himself on the spot, steadying himself with Jane's hands.

Thor applauded his son proudly before sweeping him off his feet and spinning him into the air. The baby giggled loudly and flailed, looking around dizzily and with wide eyes. "You are a fast learner, my son. And you will be a most formidable warrior. I wish to brag about your accomplishment to all who will listen. Come Vidar, let us visit your cousins."

Balancing the baby on his arm with the other wound around his back, Thor and Jane made quick work of heading to the lounge, where Pepper, Lindy, Alaina, James (Steve's son), Jim, Clint, Brianna, and Betty were sitting around. Mark had moved out a few years ago, being twenty-one now and all. Tony and Bruce were in the lab working on something "uber important" while Natasha and Steve's wife had gone out grocery shopping.

"Behold, my fellow Avengers, the mightiest Asgardian baby in all the nine realms!" Thor boomed as he exited the elevator and held up his baby like in the Lion King.

"He just took his first steps!" Jane exclaimed excitedly in explanation. The girls all squealed and rushed to coo over the latest addition to the family. Brianna, being only six, did not understand what all the fuss was about. Steve and Clint were happy and knew the feeling Thor and Jane were experiencing but remained on the couch with Brianna, James, and Jim, who didn't understand at all what the fuss was about.

The Avengers all cooed over the baby, especially Lindy, now fifteen, who was starting to think about life after college one day and wanting kids. Tony didn't like that very much, so she kept it secret around him but blabbed to anyone else who would listen (mainly Pepper).

Everyone sat on the large, round, white sectional and pushed aside the ottoman in the middle to observe Thomas' second steps. Jane sat on the floor at one end while Thor kneeled at the other. Thomas hugged his mom as tightly as he could while she chuckled and gently ushered him towards his father.

When he spotted his Dad so far away, Thomas immediately began to waddle over towards him in his footie pyjamas with a giant, toothless grin on his face. He revelled in the attention and cheers as he wobbled over towards Thor. Halfway there, his baby booties slipped and he ended up in the splits. The guys all winced while Thomas just kept giggling happily and clapping. More bubbles of drool appeared on his lips and he jumped up and down on the spot, trying to get up. Jane laughed and gently set him on his feet before softly pushing forward again.

Thomas waddled over and soon began to tilt forward. He sped up his pace unsteadily before collapsing in his dad's lap. Everyone clapped and laughed and Thor hugged his son as tightly as he could without squishing the poor thing.

"Is he not marvelous?"

The entire room was in agreement.


	10. Chapter 10: The Right Partner

**A/N. Heyy :) Here I am with another drabble, yay! This one features Alaina and Steve and takes place during the drabble with Brianna and Bruce where they appeared in the elevator during 'the talk' but Steve covered his daughters ears and closed the doors. Thank you to Second Daughter of Eve for the prompt of "I bet Steve's daughter is wondering why her dad panicked". I've also decided that this drabble, along with Brianna's and Jim's and Natasha's all happen at the same time because Brianna mentioned Alaina and Jim teaching her some new moves in the gym. So afterward, Brianna went to the lounge and Alaina had the same idea but then this happened and Jim stayed behind when his mom showed up and they ended up sparring. Make sense? Good. As requested, here are the ages and names of children and who they belong to that will go like this.**

**Name of Child (Names of Parents) = Age**

**The only important ones you need to know are:**

**Alaina Maggie Rogers (Steve/whoever) = 16**

**James Owen Rogers (Steve/whoever) = 10**

**Brianna Rosanne Banner (Bruce/Betty) = 13**

**Jim Phillip Barton-Romanoff (Clint/Natasha) = 15**

**Anyway, hope you enjoy! :D**

THE RIGHT PARTNER

"Dad! What the heck?" Alaina asked, pushing Steve's hands away from her ears.

The Captain blushed and fiddled with his fingers. "Um, well… they were talking about… ummm…"

"Dad, I have ears. Bruce was giving Brianna 'the talk'. So what? Mom gave me the talk three years ago when I was her age. "

"I-I know, but… well…"

She sighed. "Don't tell me you're still worried I'll lose my virginity to some random guy in high school. "

"What? No, of course not!"

"I'm the kind of gal to wait for the right partner before having sex."

Steve felt a strange mix between pride and horror at the mental image in his head. "And you haven't found him yet?"

She blushed and quickly ducked her head to the side, her long blonde waves swishing to the side along with her cross necklace. She unscrewed the cap on her water bottle and took a swig to avoid answering. Steve's eyes widened.

"You have a crush on someone!"

"I do not!" She protested immediately, only serving to deepen the shade of red in her cheeks.

"Who is it?"

"I'm not telling you!"

"So you do like someone!"

"No I-! Agh!"

The elevator doors opened and she sped onto their floor, headed for her room. Her super soldier dad followed easily. "Alaina, hun, if you don't want to tell me I understand but I promise you I won't overreact!"

She slammed the door in his face, just barely missing his nose. He reeled back and sighed. Teenage girls. He knocked on the door. "I don't have a crush on anyone dad! Just go away!"

"Alaina…" he warned, his tone firm. "This is no way to treat your father. I was simply curious."

"Yeah, curious to know who you're going to beat the crap out of!"

Steve bit his tongue not to say, "I knew it!" and instead said something else. "Look, I think I have a pretty good idea who it is, but if you don't want to tell me I don't mind. That's more of a girl thing anyway. But hun, back to the original topic, I trust you not to lose your virginity to some random stranger. I just don't trust the boys who gain your trust first and then break your heart."

"Daaad…" she whined from behind the door.

"No, let me finish. Anyway, I blocked your ears in the elevator because… well, I guess it was instinctive. My first reaction. I know you're sixteen and you're crushing on boys and what not but you'll always be my little girl."

There was a small pause before the door opened and Alaina hugged him around the waist. He smiled and kissed the top of her head, hugging her back tightly. "I'm sorry Dad," she apologized. "I shouldn't have slammed the door in your face. I kind of… overreacted, I guess. I think I might be PMS-ing."

He wrinkled his nose but chuckled. "It's okay, sweetheart." He stroked the back of her head softly.

She looked up at him with a reflection of his own, big, blue eyes staring into his, standing at five foot seven, like her mother. "Do you really want to know?" she whispered.

He raised both eyebrows. She was actually going to tell him? He nodded his head.

She bit her lip, a habit she had inherited from her mom. "Promise not to beat him up or act differently around him or anything?"

Now he was extremely curious. "Promise."

She paused for a minute before responding. "It's Jim."

Steve broke into a wide grin. "I knew it."

She gaped at him. "What do you mean you knew it?"

"Well, it's kind of obvious."

She slapped his chest. "Da-ad!" she whined again.

He chuckled and kept one arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry, this is just between us. I won't tell a soul and I promise that I won't act differently around you or him at all. In fact, I think Jim might like you back."

She looked so hopeful. "You really think so?"

He nodded and hummed in response. "Mmhm. Want to know how I know?"

"Um, sure."

"Because I bet all the guys are crushing on you."

She rolled her eyes and shoved his chest lightly. "Haha Dad."

"It's true!"

"Whatever. Hey, want to come in and watch a movie with me? I was just about to start Lord of the Rings."

"Again? How many times have you seen it?"

"Enough times to know it all by heart."

He shook his head and chuckled. "What am I going to do with you?"

She tugged on his arm and pulled him inside. "Come on! Jamie is already waiting on my couch to start. He's excited."

Steve smiled warmly at her. "Alright. Shall I call your mom?"

"She's working right now. Let's leave her be."

"Alright."

So Steve snuggled into the couch with his sixteen year old baby girl on his left and his ten year old baby boy on his right, and watched The Fellowship of the Ring for probably the millionth time. Not that he minded. Much.

**A/N. Next time, stay tuned for a self-prompted drabble about a three year old James Owen Rogers :D (Also called Jamie). You'll be in for a surprise I guarantee you... Oh, and points to anyone who can guess where Alaina's middle name, James' first name, and Jim's middle name came from! ;) (See above for full names) Until next time! XD**


	11. Chapter 11: Everything Is Going 2 Change

**A/N. Hi :) So here's the self-prompted fic about James (the next two are self-prompted as well because I haven't been getting many prompts but then after that we have a prompt from xXMidnightBloom). Hope you like it an enjoy! :D**

**Alaina (Steve/?) = 9**

**James (Steve/?) = 3**

**Mark (Tony/Pepper) = 21**

**Lindy (Tony/Pepper) = 15**

**Brianna (Bruce/Betty) = 6**

**Thomas (Thor/Jane) = 2**

**Jim (Clint/Natasha) = 8**

**Pretty big age gaps, huh? Oh well. Disclaimer I forgot to put in last chapter but will not be written again because I only do it for the 1st 10 chapters of a fic and will not own the Avengers in any of the future chapters either (deep breath) - I do not own the Avengers.**

Steve sat on the floor in his bedroom with his three year old son James in his lap. He was whispering and cooing to the little boy that giggled and laughed happily. Now, nothing seems wrong with this picture at first, but Steve was quick to notice. He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Darling?" he called to his wife in the kitchen.

"Yes Dear?" she called back, not leaving her station at the stove as she cooked dinner.

"James is three, right?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think he should be talking by now?"

"Well… everyone develops at their own rates I suppose.

"And he hasn't started walking yet. He only started crawling last year."

"Um…"

"Do you think… something's wrong with him?"

"Of course not! Nothing is wrong with our Jamie!" she said as she came into the room to kneel by her husband and son. "But… maybe we should take him to the doctor, just in case."

So they book an appointment. A few days later, Steve took James to see Dr. Nelson for a check-up. The super soldier placed his boy onto the bench before stepping to the side to allow the doctor to do her work. She did all sorts of tests while he fidgeted nervously and ran his hands through his hair several times.

An indeterminable amount of time later, the doctor return from collecting her data with a blank look on her face. "Captain Rogers, what I am about to tell you is going to change everything."

Steve paled but cleared his throat. "Tell me."

"Your son has autism."

He furrowed his eyebrows. That didn't sound good. "What's autism?"

"It's a brain disability that is becoming more and more common in kids these days that slows the development in all areas: cognitive, social, gross motor, fine motor, everything. His body will grow just the same but his brain doesn't function the way yours or mine does. There is no cure for this. He seems to have a rather mild case but I figure that he won't talk for at least another year. Maybe two. In a very severe case, he might not talk at all. Do you need to sit down?"

"I… I… yeah." Dr. Nelson gently pushed on his shoulder until he sat in the plastic chair next to the bench his son was lying on, staring into space and mumbling nonsense to himself.

"It's a lot to take in," she tried to comfort, "especially to someone who's never heard of autism before. I can give you several pamphlets and books with all the information you'll need if you like."

"Yes please, I- just let me call my wife."

"Of course. I'll leave you two alone and be back with the pamphlets."

He nodded at her but otherwise didn't acknowledge her exit. He took out his phone but found himself not pressing any buttons, instead twirling it in his fingers over and over and over again. James had autism. He was autistic. His brain didn't work like most people's did. His development would be severely impaired. The doctor had been right. Everything would change.

He sighed and rested his head in his hands. What was he going to do? This was something he had no idea how to deal. Sure, when he was a kid he had practically been attacked daily with all types of illnesses and had to live with many of them. Those, he could deal with. Alaina had asthma. He could deal with that. James had autism. Not so sure he could deal with that. What was a parent supposed to do in this type of situation?

James' bubbling laughter snapped his neck up. The little boy was rolling around and giggling at something Steve didn't understand. He smiled. No. This didn't change anything. His boy was still the same. Sure, he was different from the other kids but he was still his son and hadn't changed from what Steve had already seen. James was still perfect. He would be raised in a wealthy, tight-knit, protective, family in a safe, warm, and happy environment. Even if James didn't end up talking at all, he would still be treated with the same niceness that every one of the Avengers family displayed to each other. Steve smiled to match his son and grabbed the boy from under his arms, swinging him around.

James giggled and squealed and Steve rubbed his nose against his son's. No. Nothing had changed.

Alaina and her mother took the news a little harder than he did. But he was used to getting shocking news and having to adjust accordingly in short amounts of time. They weren't. His wife was in shock for several minutes before snapping out of it. She was determined to raise her son to be the best he could be.

Nine year old Alaina didn't quite understand what was "wrong" with her brother, but she knew that she had to be extra careful around him and make sure he was always safe. She understood enough to know that he wouldn't be talking or walking any time soon.

In fact, a lot of the kids didn't understand what autism was, but they accepted James no matter what and Steve couldn't have felt prouder of his entire family. Some of the older kids knew what autism was, having learned about it in school. The adults were pretty clueless about it but they were eager to learn more. So the evening Steve came back from the doctor's, he and the other Avengers (and Mark, who was twenty-one) all gathered in the lounge to read pamphlets and books and pass them around the circle.

They were going to raise this kid right and they were going to do a darned good job at it if any of them had anything to say about it. And with all this support, Steve knew that James would turn out just fine.

**A/N. Next up, a 16 year old Brianna discovers something incredible. Stay tuned to find out what it is :)**


	12. Chapter 12: Fine

**A/N. Hey guys :) Heeeeeeeere's Brianna! And I'm glad you all like James, it made me super happy :D He'll be back in later drabbles (assuming I get enough prompts/ideas to keep going), but right now is the teenage Banner. Hope you guys enjoy!**

**Brianna (Bruce/Betty) = 16**

Sixteen year old Brianna Banner was stressing about going to get her driver's permit. She was pacing the lounge floor and testing herself but she kept getting the answers wrong. Her test was in two hours!

"Okay, if you come up to an intersection, the car on the right goes first… but that's only if you arrive at the same time! Right? Um… AGH! I can't think!" She grabbed at her hair and spun around uselessly. Her palms were sweaty and her pulse was racing. She had never been this nervous about anything. There was so much pressure…

"Ugh- Ah-! AHHHHH!" Every part of her began to feel constricted and she couldn't breathe. Her knees buckled and she hit the carpet. "J-Jarvis… h-he- AAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" she screamed in pain. It felt like her skin was being ripped from her body and she rolled around on the ground screaming. It hurt so badly. What was happening to her?

"Miss Banner?" The AI called. He was met with screams. "Miss Banner?! Oh dear." He immediately notified Dr. and Mrs. Banner of the danger while their daughter writhed on the floor in agony.

The two parents rushed in just as her complexion began to turn green, and not the nauseating kind of green, but the Hulk kind of green. Bruce ran forward and kneeled by his daughter, holding her head up so he could see her.

Her eyes rolled in the back of her head and she had a spazz attack. And then her entire body was green and her muscles were more defined and she definitely looked a little taller. She reached her hand up as if to clutch at something. Betty quickly grabbed her hand and Brianna squeezed. Her mom cried out and tried to let go but Brianna was crushing it.

"Bruce!" she exclaimed.

The doctor didn't know what to do. "Brianna! Brianna, stop this! Let go of your mother!"

Slowly, Brianna released her fingers one by one and then let her hand fall to her side. It seemed to be over – but she was still green.

"Da-ad?" she croaked.

"It's me sweetheart, we're here."

"Wh-at's happening… to me?"

He pursed his lips. "I think… I think you just Hulked out."

"What?!" she looked at her hands and screamed. They were completely green and larger than normal. Even her finger nails were green. "What am I?" She sat up, no longer disoriented.

"You're yourself, just… greener. And bigger."

"But I don't want to be greener and bigger! How am I supposed to go to school like this? What about my driver's test? I am freaking out!"

Bruce and Betty shared a look. Betty reached out and placed her good hand on Brianna's knee. "Brie, hun, maybe you're big and green _because_ you're freaking out."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"Your dad Hulks out when his heart starts beating too fast. So maybe it's the same way with you. Try calming down."

"HOW DO I CALM DOWN WHEN I'M A FREAKING NEO HULK?"

"Honey, please, just try it. Deep breaths."

Brianna followed her mother and father (who knew some very effective relaxing techniques) and after about twenty minutes of trying to calm down, she eventually slowed her heart enough to return to normal. It was painful, but not as painful as the transformation _to _Hulk, not from. She passed out immediately and Bruce caught her easily.

He looked up at his wife. "Fury can never know about this."

"Why not?"

"He'll want her recruited to SHIELD. I don't want her to live that kind of life. No one knows about this, got it?"

She nodded. "Of course."

Bruce looked up at the ceiling. "JARVIS, you won't tell anyone either okay? Destroy the surveillance footage."

"Of course Dr. Banner. But what about the other Avengers?"

Bruce paused for a bit. "We'll let Brianna decide that."

"What about her driver's test?" Betty inquired, brushing the hair away from her daughter's face gently.

"I'll call them and postpone it. I'll pay whatever fee they want me to."

"Alright. But Bruce?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever you do, don't ever say the word monster around her or to her. Do you hear me? We cannot let this condition of hers rule her life. We can't let her become depressed or suicidal."

"Like me."

"Like you used to be. We just can't."

He reached over and grabbed her hand to squeeze it reassuringly. "We won't. We won't fail our daughter. She'll be just fine. I know it."

"Let's put her to bed."

Bruce carried his daughter to her bedroom while Betty made the call to postpone the test. Brianna's father gently lowered her onto the bed before kissing her forehead tenderly. "I love you. You're going to be just fine."

**A/N. Next up is silly random thing I thought up about Mark because if he took the Stark last name, his name would be Mark Stark. And I mean really? So how does he decide to fix this problem? You'll see next time :)**


	13. Chapter 13: Mark Stark

**A/N. Hi guys :) Here's the drabble on Mark and Lindy with the issue of "Mark Stark". Hope you guys like and enjoy it! :D**

**Mark (Tony/Pepper) = 12**

**Lindy (Tony/Pepper) 6**

Mark hopped up onto the bar stool with ease and immediately grabbed the salt to pour it on his french fries. Tony and Pepper had taken them out for some bonding time and ended up taking a detour to McDonald's on the way back because that was what the kids had wanted.  
While Mark chewed on his fries and Lindy munched on her chicken nuggets, Tony and Pepper sat down across from them.

"So, now that you two are officially our kids, what do you say to changing names huh?" Tony suggested in a way that only he thought was subtle.

Lindy's eyes widened to the size of saucers and she shook her head vigorously. "No! No I like my name! Lindy means pretty and I like bring pretty."

Pepper and Tony exchanged a look, holding back their chuckles before turning back to the kids. "Not your firs names, sweetie, your last names," the red head explained.

"Oh..."

"Well I know one thing," Mark spoke up, "I am not changing my name to Stark."

Tony looked offended. "What? Why not? Don't tell me you wanna keep that asshole's name?"

Pepper smacked the back of her husband's head. "Language!" she hissed

Mark rolled his eyes. He had heard much worse not just from his dad but from the older kids at school. But he didn't want to speak out and hurt Pepper's feelings.

"It's not that I don't like the name Tony, it's just that paired with my own, I would be Mark Stark."

Lindy giggled from her spot next to him while Tony shrugged. "What's wrong with that?"

"I'm not going to school with a name that rhymes." He wrinkled his nose in disgust. "But I also don't want to keep my... Father's name."

"You know..." Pepper started, leaning her elbows on the granite countertop, "I don't have a brother. I was the last of the Potts family so the name stopped being passed on because I took Tony's name. My dad wasn't too happy about that. Did you want to take my last name?"

"Potts?"

"Yeah."

"And correction, your last name is Stark. Has been for quite a while now," Tony butted in.

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Fine, maiden name, happy now?"

"Yes."

She shook her head and chuckled before kissing his cheek. "Only you, Tony."

"It better be only me, otherwise I'd have to kill him." he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto his lap while she giggled.  
Mark coughed and the two of them jumped apart, blushing. The couple weren't used to hiding their flirting and affections for one another. This might be an awkward first few months.

Mark tried to hide the flush creeping up his neck by popping up the collar his new "parents" had just bought him. He cleared his throat. "Um, I like that idea. The Potts thing, I mean. Mark Potts. That's not bad. But... My middle name. I want to change that too."

"Why?" Tony asked.

"Because it's stupid."

"Well what is it!"

The twelve year old his his face in his jacket. "Ostriche."

Tony was trying desperately not to laugh - so was Pepper. Lindy continued munching, not really listening. "Ostriche?" and then Tony burst out laughing.

Mark rolled his eyes. "Told you." He took a big bite of his Quarter BLT (a new menu item) before swallowing. "Hey Tony, what was your dad's name?"

The genius stiffened but otherwise didn't react. "Howard."

"Mark Howard Potts..." the kid tried out on his tongue, swinging his legs back and forth under the counter. "I like it."

"Me too," Pepper nodded in agreement.

"Me three!" Lindy exclaimed.

"You know what, Kid? Me too."

Lindy shook her head, swishing her hair sound her face and into her food. "Nuh uh! It's 'me FOUR' not 'me too'. You got it wrong!"

Tony, Pepper, and Mark laughed while the littlest one of all whipped her head back and forth between them, tying to decipher what was so funny. Tony reached over and patted her head affectionately and somewhat awkwardly. "Alright princess, me four."

She smiled triumphantly. "What's MY name going to be?"

"How about Lindy Stark?" Pepper suggested.

"What about my middle name?"

"What's wrong with it?"

"It's loony."

"Do you want to tell us what it is?"

"That's it! My name is Loony!"

"Ohh..." Tony bit down on the inside of his cheek so hard he tasted blood while Pepper gripped the counter with white hands.

"Since your brother is Mark Howard Potts, how about you be Lindy Maria Stark?"

She clapped happily. "Yay! I like that name." She grinned and went back to her food as if nothing had happened.

"My father was drunk when he came up with our names," Mark whispered to the others.

"Ohh..."

The tween boy smiled to himself and tossed a fry into the empty fry holder before squeezing the sides, popping it up into the air and scaring his sister.

So Anothony Edward Stark, Virginia "Pepper" Anne Potts, Mark Howard Potts, and Lindy Maria Stark ended up playing some twisted game of hand balls with french fries and French fry boxes the rest of the afternoon.

**A/N. Hope it wasn't too short for you. I also typed this on my iPod instead of my laptop so if it seems different to you, that's why. Next up is Alaina and Jim's first ever date! "Ooh..."**


	14. Chapter 14: Master Spy Touch

**A/N. Hi guys :) So here's Jim and Alaina(Jaina? Alim? Aim?)'s first date! Thank you to xXMidnightBloom who prompted this and to have the Avengers family 'spy on them and stuff'. Hope you and everyone else enjoys it :D**

**Alaina Maggie Rogers (Steve/?) = 17 [middle name comes from Margaret Peggy Carter]**

**Jim Phillip Barton-Romanoff (Clint/Nat) = 16 [middle name comes from Coulson]**

**Mark Howard Potts (Tony/Pep) = 29 [middle name comes from Tony's dad](1)**

**Lindy Maria Stark (Tony/Pep) = 23 [middle name comes from Tony's mom]**

**Brianna Roseanne Banner (Bruce/Betty) = 14 [middle name comes from my head - i made it up]**

**James Owen Rogers (Steve/?) = 11 [first name comes from James "Bucky" Barnes, middle name was made up]**

**Thomas Vidar Odinson (Thor/Jane) = 10 [middle name was the name of a random marvel asgardian character I know nothing about]**

**(1) Has moved out.**

"Well, how do I look?" Alaina asked nervously, twirling around in her brand new dress. Natasha, Betty, Jane, Pepper, Brianna, Lindy, and Alaina's mom all sat in the teenager's bedroom, admiring the seventeen year old in her light pink dress.

"You look beautiful, Ally," Brianna breathed.

"You really think so?" the blonde asked hopefully.

She nodded her head.

"And the rest of you?"

Murmurs of agreement and encouraging nods met her question.

Alaina turned back to her mirror and began fixing her hair. "I just want today to be perfect!"

Her mom stood up to get behind her daughter and do her hair for her, lightly slapping away her hands. "Honey, you know there's a pretty good chance it's not going to be perfect, right?"

She sighed. "I know, mom. I just… I want it to be. So badly!" She looked at her reflection in the mirror. "I've wanted this for a really long time.

Jim sighed and fixed his cuffs for what was probably the sixty-seventh time just since his dad walked into the room. Steve, Bruce, Thor, Tony, James, and Thomas were all there too. "You guys are sure this is what she'll like?"

"Oh yeah," Tony said while nodded his head with a thumbs up a smile Jim could tell was phony.

"Ugh!" He flopped onto his bed. "You guys are absolutely no help, whatsoever! Everyone out except for dad. Go! Shoo!"

Half an hour later, the Avengers had all gathered in the lounge while Jim and Alaina appraised each other before their date. They were both blushing like mad – it was so adorable!

"Well, um… the place I have us going to is, um… it's really nice," Jim commented, grasping at straws for what to say.

"Yeah. I've heard of it," she replied uneasily.

"Do you… want to go now?"

She smiled. "Yes, please." She hooked her arm with his and they turned for the elevator when they were stopped by Steve's voice.

"Hold it!" They both cringed and turned back. "No funny business, you hear me? No parties, no going home with strangers, no kissin-"

"DAD!"  
"What?"

She sighed exasperatedly. "We'll be going now, okay?"

"One more thing." She threw her head back and groaned while Steve stood up from the couch and walked over to them, Clint and Natasha in tow. He poked a finger to Jim's chest. "You hurt her, you deal with me." He leaned in close and it was pretty hard to be intimidating to the nephew you knew for a fact to be a good kid and had helped raise. In fact, it was kind of weird.

Jim, knowing he wasn't tooooootally serious, held his gaze and nodded. "And mom, dad, I promise to treat the lady with respect, and blah, blah, blah. We'll take the car so as not to be ostentatious with the limo, blah, blah, blah."

Natasha turned to her husband. "He doesn't sound like he's telling the truth, do you think he's telling the truth?"

"I think he's telling the truth."

"He'd better."

Jim grinned at his parents. "Well bye!" And before anyone could say anything else, he had pulled his date into the elevator and closed the doors.

Steve leaned over to Clint and his wife. "Are you sure about this?"

"Positive. Now come on, you're gonna miss all the good stuff!"

Clint sipped his water casually and observed the scene with eyes like a hawk. He spoke into the comm in his collar discreetly. "Subjects are in place. Subject one has just made subject two laugh like an idiot and now subject two is embarrassed." He fixed the sunglasses on his face and looked through the window of the coffee shop to the restaurant on the other side of the road.

"Subject two is Alaina, right?" Steve asked through the comm.

Clint sighed. "Yes, Cap, subject two is Alaina."

"Right."

"Have they broken the ice yet?" Natasha wanted to know.

"I'm thinking they shattered it at some point in the car on the way here. Or so my sources tell me."

"You mean Happy?" Steve asked.

Clint sighed again. "Yes, I mean Happy."

"Subject two just got up to go to the bathroom," Natasha stated from her position inside the restaurant with Steve, pretending to be a husband and wife couple on a date. All three parents were in disguises so as not to be recognized.

"Guys, are you sure we should be doing this? Isn't it an invasion of their privacy? Don't we trust our kids?"

"Shut up, Steve. If you leave now, we're not recording anything for you."

The Captain sighed. "That's it, I'm leaving." He looked Natasha in the eye. "This marriage was good while it lasted but I want a divorce." He handed her a one hundred dollar bill and stood up, passing the extremely shocked waiter who had heard his last sentence. He slipped out of the restaurant, hopefully unnoticed.

Natasha shrugged at the waiter. "You win some, you lose some."

He opened and closed his mouth like a fish before handing her the food they'd ordered and scurrying off. She took a sip of her vodka, amused.

"Subject One is checking his teeth in the mirror," Clint told her through the comm.

"Subject Two is coming back from the bathroom!"

"Nat! Do something!"

"On it." She flicked a piece of food at Jim which made him jump and look around. Instead of finding the assailant, he spotted Alaina and quickly put away the mirror just in time for her to sit down with him.

They started talking but neither Natasha nor Clint could hear them. By the end of the date, Jim leaned over to Alaina in the car with Happy. "So this was fun."

"It was," she agreed, turning back to look at him and smiling. "We should do it again."

He grinned. "I'd like that." A pause. He licked his lips. "Hey, you know that my parents have been tailing us the whole time?"

"Of course. I'm pretty sure my dad was here at some point too but I think he left at some point. I'm also pretty sure he was roped into this by _you_r parents."

He shrugged. "What am I gonna do? They're my parents. Anyway, I hope you didn't mind."

She shook her head and chuckled. "Nah, I wouldn't expect anything less."

"Should we confront them about it when we get home?"

"Nah, let them think they still have their master spy touch. Wouldn't want to make them feel old from the fact that we spotted them easily."

"Maybe it's just because we're their kids? I mean, they _have_ been training us since we were little to be extremely observant, careful, and a good fighter."

"That too. So you think we should tell them off?"

"Oh yeah."


	15. Chapter 15: Dad

**A/N. Hi guys :) What's happenin'? This drabble is once again focused on James and is self-prompted. I have ideas too! The next few prompts are by you guys though. Anyway, hope you enjoy :D**

**James (Steve/?) = 5**

**Thomas (Thor/Jane) = 4**

**Alaina (Steve/?) = 11**

**Just out of curiousity, who do you guys picture as Steve's wife? I left her anonymous because I have no idea who to put that would attract the most readers' attention. There's so many choices too! Peggy Carter (somehow), Sharon Carter, Maria Hill, Natasha Romanoff, OC, etc. Oddly enough, when I write her down, she is literally a blank face - a random woman with no name. Weird, huh? Okay. Your turn :)**

Steve, James, Tony, and Thomas were all sat in the lounge playing with the kids. It was Tony's turn to watch Thomas for Thor and Jane, who were in Asgard. Because the quarter Asgardian baby was so close in age to Steve's son (whom the Captain was watching while his wife went grocery shopping), the two Avengers decided to set up a play date.

Steve had little Jamie in his lap and was maneuvering the child's hands to try and put the correct shapes into the matching holes. James wasn't really paying attention and staring off into space, allowing his hands to be manipulated.

Tony and Thomas were building a tower of blocks together that was as tall as the kid himself. "It's as tall as me!" He exclaimed not a minute later, jumping up and down excitedly. The little monument began to waver and Tony immediately backed up so as not to get hit.

"Woah there kid, calm down. Wouldn't want to ruin all our hard work, now would we?"

Thomas stopped in his tracks and shook his head rapidly. "No way! I want it to touch the ceiling!" He stretched his arms up high and stood on his tippy toes, wiggling his fingers to try and reach the very high ceiling.

Tony smiled. "That's some ambition you got there, kiddo."

"What's ambition?"

While the inventor attempted to explain the definition of the word (he's had quite a bit of practice since his goddaughter Alaina was born – and all the kids after that), Steve lifted James to his feet. "Alright son, let's try something else. Do you want to build a tower too?" he asked, trying to look his son in the eye.

Jamie didn't make eye contact, instead staring off into space with a neutral expression. He looked around as if he hadn't heard his dad, even though Steve knew that he had. Even though the boy was five years old, a whole year older than Thomas, the autistic child had yet to talk. He could nod and shake his head and respond to certain actions but he could never speak words. Sometimes when he was happy, he'd make nonsensical gibberish or he'd try (and fail) to imitate words said on TV. He would occasionally sing along to Disney songs (with gibberish words and no tune or melody but he tried) and he absolutely ADORED Winnie The Pooh.

Since that night three years ago, the Avengers had become "autism savvy" as they liked to call it. All of them had read up on autism at some point or other and made it their duty to know a little more about one of the latest additions to the family. They were all extremely protective of their children (for obvious reasons) but James was like the smallest and most vulnerable to hurt and bullying. He was in kinder-garden at this point, but he went to a special school entirely for mentally disabled children. It was all the way across town but Happy was always willing to personally take the kid to school when Steve and his wife didn't have time.

Steve stared at his son's gorgeous brown eyes but James didn't look back. There was a small pause before he began slowly shaking his head back and forth. He blinked.

Steve sighed. Nothing. "I'm going to get a snack. Are you hungry?"

There was a five second pause before Jamie nodded gently. The Captain pushed himself to his feet and Tony followed him to the kitchen section of the floor while Thomas continued building and James stared at the cartoon on TV.

The genius approached his friend. "Maybe we should-"

Before he could finish his sentence, both their cell phones beeped at the same time from their places on the counter. They both sighed. Fury was calling. Steve picked up his phone. "Rogers."

"There's been a situation. We need the Avengers to come in."

"Send in Hulk, Widow, and Hawkeye. Stark and I are-"

"I need all of you."

"Sir-"

"NOW. If you all don't come, the whole world could be at stake."

Steve turned to face Tony with wide eyes. He pushed the phone to his shoulder. "Call the girls. Get them up here now and bring the other children. The Avengers are going back into action."

Tony seemed shocked for a moment. The Initiative had been put on Hiatus – or so he thought. The Avengers had too much to lose now. Not to mention that they were all getting pretty old; Tony and Bruce especially. This must be big.

After the wives arrived and the Avengers (minus Thor) assembled, a flurry of activity and commotion started. All the kids (except Mark, who had moved out a little while ago for school) were gathered in the lounge around Thomas' tower of Midgard (or so he called it). James sat by his sister, who kept her arm around him more for her own comfort than for his.

James didn't like noise. Noise made his ears hurt. Commotion and big crowds and waiting all made him uncomfortable. He slapped his hands over his ears sloppily and whined, squeezing his eyes shut. Alaina rubbed his arms and tried to soothe him and shush him but he wasn't quieting down. He began rocking back and forth as the adults all had to yell over each other to communicate and IT WAS TOO LOUD.

He spotted his dad across the room. His was dad was awesome. His dad could do anything. Maybe he could stop all this racket. "Da," he whispered so quietly that not even his sister could hear him. No reaction. He tried again, still covering his ears. "Da!" The kids began looking at him funny. Not that he noticed – or cared. "DAAAAAAAAAAAAAD!"

That hurt his own ears but everything stopped. It was quiet again and he immediately relaxed. Several pairs of eyes bored into his face but he didn't "see" any of it. Instead, he just began hitting the shapes together, content now that he was quiet again.

Steve, now in his Captain America uniform, stood there, stunned. Had his son just… called to him? He slowly stepped forward. The children (though they weren't all children – some were teenagers) parted so that he could kneel by his son. "What did you just say?"

James looked up and suddenly his dad was right there, inches away. "Da."

A smile began to play across the soldier's lips and he could feel his eyes watering. "Me?" He put a hand to his chest while the others waited with bated breath.

James sloppily tapped his hand against Steve's, right over the star. "Da."

A grin so wide that it could have split his face in half engulfed his face and he grabbed his son in a bear hug, standing and swinging him around in circles. Jamie giggled and laughed and lifted his arms and legs into the air, trusting his dad to keep a hold on him.

"You talked! You called me dad! You guys heard it, right? He called me dad!" Steve was positively beaming as he held his son with one arm and rushed over to the other adults.

Many of the women had tears in their eyes and the men were all nodding with bright smiles. Everyone agreed that James had spoken. He himself was shedding real tears. His son was five years old and he had finally, _finally_, said a word. And it had been, "Dad".

**A/N. Next up, Mark brings his girlfriend home for the first time ;)**


	16. Chapter 16: Nikki

**A/N. Hi guys, long time no see! (not really, it's been 6 days - wow it feels longer than that) So here's a prompt about Mark needing a girlfriend while in his twenties (thank you Second Daughter of Eve!) so I have her coming home to meet the fam! Yay :D Anyway, hope you enjoy! My deadline for each chapter will be within 7 days of posting the previous one. If ever you find that the deadline has passed, something big happened but I am 99% sure that I will be able to notify you within 14 days what the status will be. Anyway, go on! Read! ;) please.**

**Mark (Pepperony) = 21**

**Lindy (Pepperony) = 15**

**Alaina (Steve/?) = 9**

**Jim (Clintasha) = 8**

**Brianna (Bretty) = 6**

**James (Steve/?) = 3**

**Thomas (Thane) = 2**

Pepper took Tony's collar into her small, dainty hands and began flattening it against his shoulders while he babbled on to her, obviously nervous. She just smiled and listened with vague amusement.

"… not smart?! What if she's this dumb blonde bimbo and he's convinced he loves her? What if I say something to mess it up? What if she's too good for him? What if-?"

Pepper interrupted him with a laugh. She tapped his cheek lightly. "Don't worry, Tony. I'm sure everything will be fine." She bent over to grab his red, silk tie from the bed.

He huffed while she wrapped the accessory around his neck. "You know me Pep, I mess everything up."

She rolled her eyes. "That's not true. You haven't messed up this marriage."

"I'd say it's pretty messed up."

She pulled on his tie and he choked. The smug grin on her face was barely visible, but he knew it was there. She loosened it a little. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

He spluttered and pulled the tie away from his throat with his index finger, giving himself room to breathe. "Well played, Mrs. Stark."

She dusted off her hands and grabbed her clutch while he adjusted his tie. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"

He smirked and reached for her hips, tugging her closer. "That will be all Mrs. Stark." He pecked her lips. "For now."

She smiled and interlaced their fingers before leading him into the hallway towards the elevator. When they reached the lounge, everyone was already there except for the "guests". Well, the main guests.

Mark had decided to bring his girlfriend from University home to meet the family over Spring Break. Lindy was coincidentally having her tutor over that night to help her with math (DAMN YOU FUNCTIONS!).

So although he had been invited over for dinner, the attention would mostly be on Mark and his girlfriend Nikki. Everyone was dressed a little more formally than what was probably necessary, but despite the fact that no one was biologically related to Mark except for Lindy, they were all nervous and anxious about meeting this possible new addition to their family.

Pepper kept fussing over him and messing with his hair and he was trying to push her away gently when the elevator doors opened. There was only possibility of who it could be – unless there was another damn security breach and Coulson or Fury was about to walk in those doors. No such bad luck (thank goodness). Mark walked in with dress pants and a collared shirt with a beautiful woman on his arm at his side. She appeared a little on the shy side but not so much so as to hide behind her boyfriend.

Tony stopped play fighting with Pepper and instead leaned close to her ear. "How long have they been dating again?" he whispered, barely moving his lips. Even after all these years, sometimes she was still his personal assistant.

She tilted her head toward him a fraction. "Six months. Her name is Nikki Delarosa. She is twenty-one years old and attends Brown with him."

He grimaced. "Ugh, Brown."

"I know, Tony, I know. But it's a good school. Anyway, she- Hi!" She greeted brightly as Mark and Nikki walked into hearing distance. She quickly tugged her son into a hug, reaching up on her tip-toes to wrap her arms around his neck. "It's so good to see you! I've missed you so much." She kissed his cheek while he smiled.

"Mo-om…" he whined quietly, teasingly.

She rolled her eyes, pretending she hadn't heard him. She turned to his girlfriend who had let go of her partner's hand and smiled shyly. Pepper stepped forward and gave the girl a hug too. She seemed surprised, but returned it tentatively. "It's so nice to finally meet you!" She pulled away while Tony and Mark embraced behind her. "Mark has told us so much about you over Christmas break that I've just been dying to see for myself what an amazing girl you are."

Nikki's cheeks turned a heartwarming pink as she brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Thank you Mrs. Stark."

"Call me Pepper."

"Alright," Nikki agreed with a smile of her own.

Tony approached her next, extending his hand. He was not as warm as Pepper around strangers, even after all these years. He had gotten better at trusting and knowing who to trust, but he could never bring himself to trust just anyone anymore – not since Obadiah. The two of them shook hands and he shot her a closed mouth smile.

"Nice to meet you Nikki."

"Likewise Mr. Stark."

He brushed both sides of his jacket behind him before stuffing one hand into his pants pocket and pointing to his wife with the other. "If you call her Pepper, you can call me Tony." He jutted his thumb into his chest, where his arc reactor used to be.

She nodded. "Tony and Pepper. It's a pleasure to meet you." She bowed her head a little. The woman had long black hair that fell to her shoulders with warm brown eyes. She was a little on the short side, maybe five foot five. She appeared to be mixed. Half Asian and half Spanish, perhaps?

After going through all the other introductions in the entirety of the Avengers (Steve, his wife, Alaina, James, Clint, Natasha, Jim, Thor, Jane, Thomas, Bruce, Betty, Brianna, Lindy, and her tutor Derek), the nineteen of them settled down at the extremely large dining room table Tony and Pepper had bought once the significant others of the team started to move in (i.e. Jane, Betty, Steve's wife). It was a perfect square and could seat six to a side for a total of twenty-four people with an absolute maximum of twenty-eight if you put a person on each corner.

Pepper, Clint, Natasha, Betty, Bruce, and James and Alaina's mom had all teamed up to make dinner. They had wanted to make a good impression, so they wanted the meal to be home cooked. It had taken the entire day to make it all but in the end it had all been worth it.

So there they all sat, eating awkwardly at the table while no one knew what to say. On a normal evening, multiple conversations would be going on at once and it would be extremely loud in the dining hall, but on this particular night, there were simply hushed whispers. Nikki was sat between her supportive boyfriend and his sister Lindy, who was none too subtly glaring at her.

The "raven haired maiden", as Thor had called her, leaned over toward the teenager. "Is there something on my face?" She knew that wasn't why Lindy might be staring at her, but she needed an opener that didn't sound like an accusation.

The little sister shook her head. "No. You're good."

Nikki licked her lips and started again. She really wanted to make a good impression on Mark's family. Not only where they the biggest family she had ever seen, but they were made up of super heroes. Good impressions were vital to meetings like this. "I understand if you're jealous that I'm stealing all your brother's attention."

Lindy whipped her head around to face her and narrowed her eyes menacingly. "I'm not jealous!" she whispered-yelled back, nostrils flaring.

"I'm sorry. I didn't- I just… "She trailed off. From experience, Nikki knew that Mark adored his little sister. He was very protective of her and was always talking about how proud he was of her. If Lindy didn't like her, the University student wasn't sure what might happen. "You're glaring at me." Not her best conversation starter ever…

Lindy returned her gaze to her food and stabbed a piece of broccoli. "That's because you're really pretty," she mumbled before stuffing the vegetable into her mouth.

Nikki was stunned. "You really think so?"

She nodded grudgingly and swallowed her food. "And you seem really nice."

"I- thank you."

"Mark deserves a girl like you."

"I-"

"I just… maybe I am a _little_ jealous. But that's it. Just a little." She pinched her fingers together to demonstrate her point. "I mean… he's my big brother and I see him, what, two or three times a year? I just… I miss him. And with you in his life… he's never going to want to come home." Lindy stared at her mashed potatoes like they might open up and eat swallow her whole, like she wanted that to happen so she could avoid this conversation entirely.

Nikki's face softened considerably. "I have an older brother too. I felt exactly the same way when he went off to college. I still feel that way sometimes."

Lindy looked up at her skeptically. "Really?"

She nodded. "Mmhm. And I promise not to take your brother away from you."

The high school student eyed her warily. "If you break that promise, my dad will find him and bring him home." As if having just thought of that (which she probably did), she sat up a little straighter. "Yeah, dad and Jarvis will find him if you take him away from us."

Nikki laughed, catching the attention of those around her. She winked at the younger girl. "Don't worry. That won't ever happen."

Satisfied, Lindy returned to her meal while Mark grabbed his girlfriend's hand and gave it a squeeze. Pepper and Tony, who had been on Lindy's other side, had been listening the entire time. They were rather proud of both their kids. Pepper smiled warmly at them while Tony did the same. He turned to Lindy's tutor Derek all of a sudden.

"So kid, do you have a criminal record?"

"DA-_AD_!"

**A/N. Next up, Lindy's first date. Tony meets the boy. Things do not go well. ;) Stay tuned!**


	17. Chapter 17: Tony Stark:Husband,Dad&Boss

**A/N. Hey guys, what's up? Here's the next chapter, requested by kylie . roby . 58 (sorry about the spaces, Fanfiction wouldn't let me NOT put them there). This drabble/oneshot-thing depicts Lindy wanting to go on a first date and Tony being all, "NO. You're my little girl! No date for you!" It's described much more eloquently than that in the actual story xP so yeah! Go read and let me know what you think please :D Enjoy.**

**Lindy (Pepperony) = 16**

**Mark (Pepperony) = 22**

**Brianna (Bretty) = 7**

**Thomas (Thane) = 3**

Lindy Stark wrung her hands nervously, hovering just beyond the glass doors to her mother's office. She was rather nervous. But she knew going to her mom was the right choice. Her dad might have a heart attack and need another arc reactor or something – science wasn't her best subject.

"Okay, Lindy, you can do this. Just g-"

The automatic doors opened with a swish and out swept Pepper Stark, nearly running her daughter over. She halted just shy of crashing into her but her papers slipped from her arms and rained down onto the linoleum floor. "Oh!"

Lindy blushed furiously. "Mom! Gosh, I'm sorry." The two of them knelt down to gather up the papers.

Pepper sighed. Now she had to organize them. She honestly needed a PA – badly. Maybe Darcy would be willing to come back… She shook her head free. "It's alright sweetie, I should have been watching where I was going." The two of them stood to their full heights. "What are you doing here?"

Lindy shrugged. "Um… well," she scratched the back of her neck nervously, "I kind of… wanted to talk to you about something."

"Is it important?" Pepper asked just a tad impatiently. She was a very busy CEO.

"Uh… I guess it… depends on how you look at it."

"Well what's it about?"

"… a boy."

Pepper blinked in surprise. No wonder she hadn't bothered Tony about this. The red head smiled at her daughter. "One second." She activated the blue tooth in her ear and gestured for Lindy to follow her down the hallway. "Hello. I need you to postpone all appointments for today for one hour." Lindy began to protest but Pepper just waved her arms at her and shushed her. "Yes, I'm sure. Family thing. Thank you very much." She hung up just as they entered the elevator. She pulled the elastic out of her hair and shook it out. "What can I do for you, honey?"

Lindy smiled. "You rock, Mom."

She shrugged. "I know. Now spill."

"Well…" her cheeks coloured visibly. "This guy… Joseph. From school. He uh… he asked me out today."

A smile grew on Pepper's face. "And? What did you say?"

"Um… I told him I had to think about it."

"Is that code for, "I have to ask my parents' permission?'"

The doors opened and the two of them walked onto the teenager's floor. Lindy chuckled. "Um… I guess?"'

"Good."

She snorted. "So anyway… can I? Please?"

"That depends."

Her face fell.

"Do you have a crush on him?"

Her face turned a bright shade of red. "Um… yeah."

"For how long?"

She hung her head, allowing her light brown hair to cover her face as she stepped into her bedroom first. "Today."

"Did you even know this guy before today?"

"Of course!" she squeaked defensively, sitting on her bed. "He's been in like, three of my classes!"

"In the past three years?" Pepper raised an eyebrow, placing her papers on the desk before joining her adopted child on the bed.

More blushing. "Yeah."

The CEO sighed. "I you said yes, why would you?"

Lindy didn't have an answer. "Um… because he asked me?"

"And you got a good vibe from him?"

"Yeah. He's… well he's…"

"Do you know anything about him?"

"I do!"

"Like what?"

"Um…"

Pepper sighed. "Lindy, you're sixteen years old. I can't stop you if you really want to go on this date."

She perked up. "Really?"

"Your dad might have a different opinion."

Lindy groaned and fell back onto the bed. "Can I just not tell him?"

"Lindy Stark…"

"I know, I know."

"WHAT?!" Tony shouted, rolling back in his office chair across the floor to hit a sensory panel on the wall. The extremely loud music turned off. "Sorry, honey, what did you say?" He turned to his daughter standing in the doorway, messing with her hands.

Bruce, Betty, and Jane were working around the lab counter just a few feet away, having already greeted the teenager. Lindy rocked back and forth on her heels. "Um, can I speak to you alone please?"

"Why?" He rolled back to the counter with the others and began messing with three dimensional holographic images.

Lindy sighed and stepped fully into the lab. She slowly approached the table. "Because… because it's private."

"Anything you want to say to me, you can say to the rest of the family."

"Tony…" Betty and Jane chorused warningly.

He ignored them. "Go on Sweetie," he encouraged without looking up. He began rearranging a hologram of Avengers Tower, seeing what rearranging he could do without having to move anyone for the time being. She mumbled something incoherent. "What was that? My ears are still ringing from the music."

She sucked in a deep breath. "I've got a date tonight."

The Tower came crashing down as Tony's entire arm twitched, smashing into pieces on the counter. He whirled around in the office chair. "No you're not."

"Da-ad!" she whined.

"Nope. Absolutely not." He stood up, kicking the chair across the room just a _little_ forcefully. He scooped up all the pieces of the Tower he'd knocked over and dropped them in the garbage bin that appeared in the corner. It rattled before dissolving into the table.

"But Dad!"

"Not a chance."

She stepped closer to him, her heart sinking. "But Mom's letting me go!"

"Well I'm not your mom."

"Da-ddy!" she whined again, stomping her foot.

Tony froze, his back to her. She was playing dirty. He had to stand his ground. He straightened his back. "Lindy Maria Stark." He turned around, eyes narrowed. "You are too young."

She crossed her arms and cocked her hip, reminding him of her mother despite the lack of actual blood relation. The trio of scientists watched, amused and relieved that none of them were at that stage with their children yet. "And how old would I have to be to date?"

Tony came up short. That didn't stop his mouth from moving. "When you're married."

She threw up her hands exasperatedly. "That doesn't even make any sense!"

"Welcome to my life."

"Dad. I'm sixteen. I said yes. I'm old enough and I can't just cancel on him."

"Yes you can. And this isn't your math tutor, is it?"

"NO! His name is Jo-" she snapped her mouth shut.

"Joe? Joe who? Joe Schmo? Who is this guy? How old is he? Does he have a criminal record? Does he have a permanent school record? Has he ever been in detention? Has he been flirting with you? For how long?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" she shouted, bursting after his interrogation.

"AHA!" He pointed a finger at her. "You don't know him. Nope. No date."

"I'm going anyway."

Bruce, Betty, and Jane leaned in closer. "Ooh…"

Tony clenched his fists. "You are not going on that date because you are grounded. I can have JARVIS lock down the Tower."

"I can have Mom unlock it."

"I'll tell your brother."

She paled. "You wouldn't."

"Try me."

The two had mean staring contest for quite a while. The tension was almost palpable in the room. "If you can't respect my decisions," she said finally, enunciating every word, "then how can you respect me? How can you…" tears began to well up in her eyes. "You don't trust me." She turned on her heel and fled from the room.

Tony reached out a hand uselessly but she had already gone. His face looked crestfallen. About five seconds after she left, he clenched his fingers into a fist and, with a cry of frustration, he spun around and pounded his fist into the wall. "OW! Fuck!" He shook his hand out.

Bruce turned to the women. "Someone should call-"

Betty held up her phone. "I've got it."

He nodded. "I knew there was a reason I loved you."

She grinned at him while Jane rolled her eyes, still working on their current project. Meanwhile, Tony began repeatedly banging his forehead against the wall. "Ow. Ow. Ow."

When Pepper came racing in just under one minute later, he was still at it. "I'm here! What's the emergency?"

Bruce, Betty, and Jane simultaneously pointed at Tony, not looking up from what they were doing. Pepper turned to find her husband losing brain cells by the second. She ran over to him and grabbed his shoulders before turning him to face her. "Tony? Tony, baby, talk to me."

"Pepper… she's growing up. Make it stop." He fell forward until he hit his head against her shoulder. "Ow."

She chuckled and rubbed his back soothingly. "I can't. I wish I could, but I can't. Mark is already twenty-two."

He groaned. "No. He's still a kid."

She pressed her cheek against the top of his head. "Oh Tony."

"She's my little girl. She doesn't go on dates in my head."

"But this isn't your head."

She thought she heard him mumbling something about making that possible with Stark technology but she elected to ignore that. "She thinks I don't trust her. I made her cry."

"She's just hormonal, Tony. All teenage girls are like that. I remember being like that. It was not fun."

"But Pepper…" he whined. "She's my little girl!"

She sighed. "I know, honey, trust me, I know. She's my little girl too. But Mark's got a wonderful girlfriend and now it might time for Lindy to-"

"No."

"Tony…"

"No!" He pushed away from her gently. "What if he's a playboy? What if he's like a younger version of me?"

She could see the fear in his eyes. Just because he'd cleaned up his act, did not mean that others would. There were still plenty of bad boys out there, waiting to break girls' hearts. The fact that Tony had been one of those boys only helped in reinforcing his protectiveness of her. She reached out and grabbed his hand, taking her other and raking it through his hair. "Tony, what did she say?"

"She said… I don't respect her decisions. Or her. And that I don't trust her."

She nodded. "But you do."

"Yeah, it's him I don't trust."

"I think I know a way we can fix this." He lit up like a Christmas tree. "She's still going on that date."

He sighed. "That girl will be the death of me," he muttered under his breath.

So Pepper went to Lindy and told her that she could go on the date if she brought Joseph home to meet the parents (and ONLY the parents – Mark was away at University) and if they didn't like him, she wouldn't be able to go. Another condition was to have Happy drive them to and from the date no matter what and not to leave the premises of said date AT ALL. Pepper and Tony had to be given all contact information of both of them as well as the address to the theatre they were going to and at the end, had to drop of Lindy first.

Lindy called up Joseph and they both agreed to the conditions. She even signed a contract which Joseph would sign as well when he arrived, via Happy.

A few hours later, Lindy, Tony, and Pepper were sitting in the lounge, waiting for Joseph to arrive. Tony had spent nearly the entire time telling Lindy that her dress was too short (it was knee-length) and that she needed to cover up on top. To appease him, she added tights and a scarf (which she could easily remove later) to the already conservative dress.

After that, Tony began tapping his foot and drumming his fingers along the chair impatiently. "Where is he? Is he late yet?"

"Dad! Chill! It's not even five yet."

"If he's late, I'll punch him."

"Da-ad…"

"Sir," JARVIS interrupted them, "Mr. Wood and Mr. Hogan have just pulled into the garage."

Tony snapped his fingers and stood up. "Joseph Wood. Run a search on him ASAP Jarvis." He began walking towards the second elevator.

"Tony? Where are you going?" Pepper asked angrily.

"Be right back, love, I gotta do a little search." He blew her a kiss and Lindy put her face into her hands. Her mother stroked her head softly.

"He's just being the over protective dad that all dads are."

"I know, and I know that it means he loves me but it's just so gosh darned annoying!"

"Tell me about it," she dead panned. "Over protectiveness is one of the few ways he shows affection. This one time-"

She didn't get to finish that sentence because the elevator doors opened and Joseph was "shoved" lightly into the room. He stumbled a bit and turned to look at Happy, who was glaring at him. The girls assumed he'd already given the, "If you hurt her I'll kill you" speech in the elevator. The boy whipped his head around, eyes darting back and forth as if everything in the room could kill him.

"Joseph!" Lindy called, standing up to greet him. She scurried over to him and smiled. "Welcome to my home."

He nodded mutely. "Yeah it's… expansive."

"Expensive?"

"That too."

"Oh! Joseph, this is my mom, Pepper Stark."

Pepper stepped up to the plate and shook hands with the young man. "It's nice to meet you Joseph."

"Yeah. You too, Mrs. Stark." He looked down at his toes awkwardly, letting his Justin Bieber haircut cover his eyes. Pepper didn't like that look on the kid, considering he had bright green eyes that reminded her of emeralds. The kid flipped his hair to the side.

All of a sudden, the four of them could hear mechanical whirrings and zips and zaps that sounded suspiciously like heavy, robotic footsteps. They all turned towards the second elevator where Iron Man Mark fifty waltzed in. Joseph almost fainted in fright as Lindy buried her face into his shoulder in embarrassment, Pepper face-palmed, and Happy grinned and nodded knowingly.

"Hey kid," Tony greeted with his robotic voice as he approached heavily. He held out his hand to shake. "Tony Stark."

Joseph tentatively reached out a shaking hand. Tony gripped it and shook it up and down surprisingly gently before letting go. The male teen quickly crossed his arms and flipped his hair again. Tony decided at that moment that he didn't like this kid. The boy coughed. "Joseph Wood."

"I know. I googled you. So you like to fish, huh?"

"Tony!"

"Dad!"

"Boss…"

The inventor shushed them all with a mini flare that nearly made Joseph pee his pants. The others were used to it, but still irritated. Iron Man closed his hand into a fist before sticking out his index finger and shoving it into the boy's chest, knocking a step backward. He leaned in close so that his faceplate was just inches from the kid's nose. "If you hurt my daughter, I'll crush you like bug so fast you'll think I'm a red and gold Hulk – but cooler. And don't think I won't unleash him either. In fact, fear all the Avengers if you piss them off, kid. They'll pummel you to a pulp."

He gulped. "I… just wanted you to know that you're my favourite."

Tony paused. "Flattery won't get you anywhere, kid. But nice try. Now sign the damn contract and get out of my house."

"Tony!"

"Dad!"

"Boss…"

**A/N. Next time on, Our Children, take a peak into the annual Avengers family reunion where absolutely EVERYONE possible brings home their significant other for dinner. Wonder how this is going to turn out... ;) Stay tuned!**


	18. Chapter 18: Avengers Family Reunion

**A/N. Hi guys! Almost missed the deadline and I didn't even notice :S Whoops. Anyway, here's a drabble with EVERYONE coming over dinner, girlfriends and boyfriends alike, requested by xXMidnightBloom :) I couldn't find a way to insert an actual point into this thing so... it's just kind of stuff happening. Nothing exciting. I hope you enjoy anyway though :D I also forgot to mention that it seems like the majority of you picture Sharon Carter as Steve's wife, although some of you picture Tania from my other stories (which you should totally go read!) as his wife, which is really interesting to see. And the names below include who the kid brought to the dinner party or who is involved with them in any way. Without further ado, please read on!**

**Thomas (Thane) – 16/Emily**

**James (Steve) – 17/Violet**

**Brianna (Bretty) – 20/Lukas**

**Jim (Clintasha) – 22/Alaina**

**Alaina (Steve) – 23/Jim**

**Lindy (Pepperony) – 29/Cody**

**Mark (Pepperony)- 35****/Nikki - Josh**

"Welcome to Avengers Tower. I am JARVIS, Mr. Stark's AI – that stands for Artificial Intelligence. I run virtually everything in the building as well as any and all Iron Man suits and electronically powered devices. So do not be alarmed. I am simply here to help you. The Avengers are pleased to have you. Please make your way to the elevator and head to the thirty-third floor.

"Welcome to Avengers Tower. I am JARVIS, Mr. Stark's AI…"

Emily Rosen gaped at the inside of the Tower she had read so much about, staring at everything open-mouthed. A couple people followed in behind her, of which she knew no one. She clutched her boyfriend's hand excitedly while he watched her face, amused.

"Thomas, this is amazing!" She threw her arms out to the side and gestured around the lobby as they made their way to the elevator.

He laughed, tugging her closer. "Of course it is. Uncle Tony is THE innovator of the millennium."

She laughed in disbelief. "I can't believe you live here!"

He shrugged. "Eh. I only half live here."

"Oh right! Because the other half of your home is on Asgard." She rolled her eyes.

Thomas winked at her. "I'll bring you there someday. I really want you to meet my grandmother. She is possibly the sweetest person you will ever encounter."

"I look forward to it."

"Watch out!" Someone shouted behind them. Something snipped Emily's arm and she cried out. Thomas pulled her behind him and turned around to face whoever had thrown the projectile. A few paces back were Brianna and her boyfriend Lukas. He winced apologetically. "My bad."

Thomas huffed and returned to his girlfriend, who was staring intently at the cut on her arm. They entered the elevator and he watched as it began to clean and close itself. He loved watching her do that.

Brianna and Lukas shuffled into the small space as well and pressed the button for the dining room floor. The doors began to close until-

"Hold the door!" Brianna shoved her foot in the way and the doors opened, revealing Jim and Alaina, panting. "Thanks," she said between breaths as she leaned on her fiancé.

Jim closed the doors and the lot of them began to ascend. "Hey guys! Long-time no see!" He and Thomas clapped their hands together before pulling their chests together and tapping backs. Alaina and Brianna hugged before they switched around. Once the reunion of cousins was over, they began introducing significant others.

They had just finished when the doors opened again and they trickled onto the floor. Tony, Pepper, Thor, Jane, Bruce, Betty, Clint, Natasha, Steve, his wife, and James were all gathered around the extremely long table before their attention was attracted by the "ding" of the elevator bell.

The two crowds meshed and it was impossible to keep track of who went where and who split up and who stayed together. Soft jazz music played in the background via JARVIS as they waited for the others to arrive.

Fifteen minutes later, Lindy and her gay best friend Cody arrived on the scene. They joined in the fray, introducing each other to parents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Lindy Stark had just gone through a nasty divorce and so did not have a significant other to bring with her to the dinner gathering. Cody had volunteered himself to accompany her and she'd whole-heartedly agreed.

Not long after her arrival, did her brother and his family appear. Mark, Nikki, and their little son of six, Josh completed the annual Avengers family reunion.

Emily was introduced to Thor and Jane first, seeing as how she was their son's girlfriend. She explained to them that she was a mutant and attended Professor Xavier's school for the gifted. She and Thomas had met on a chat room for people who felt like they were, "from out of this world".

Lukas had already met Bruce and Betty, but he hadn't met everyone else. So he went around the room with his girlfriend on his arm. He and Clint got along pretty well, seeing as the guy was a jokester. The twenty-two year old was a scientist who specialized in genetics and understood Brianna's "condition" completely.

Jim and Alaina walked around, mingling with the boyfriends and girlfriends of their cousins as everyone congratulated them on their recent engagement and the blonde got to show off her ring, which Jim had gone shopping for with Tony and his dad.

Lindy and Cody stuck mostly with Mark, Nikki, and Josh in order to catch up. Cody was a huge hit with the family and instantly made anyone relax and have fun. He just had one of those personalities.

The Potts family of three lived in Brooklyn near Nikki's parents so that they could better care for her dad, who was dying of cancer. They were living a relatively happy life and stayed connected to the Avengers via JARVIS, who had been installed into their house as a wedding gift from his Mark's parents: Tony and Pepper.

Lindy lived in an apartment across town that her ex-husband had left to her in the divorce, but she was working on moving back to the Tower for a little while. She needed some time to spend with her family and to herself.

Alaina and Jim both attended NYU and stayed in residence – because they could. They would more than likely move back into the Tower after school, but it was nice to get away for a few years, according to them. Of course, they couldn't room together because they were of opposite genders but they lived in co-ed dorms so it was easy to see each other.

Brianna still lived in the Tower and attended Julliard University to study dance and choreography. She met Lukas on a walk one time on the way to get pizza for the other Avengers and literally ran into him. Sparks flew and... now they're a couple.

Thomas still lived in the Tower, obviously. He was still attending high school. Despite the fact that Emily lived in Westchester, NY about forty or so minutes away, the two of them constantly Skyped and Facebook-ed, and tweeted and what not.

James Rogers also lived at the Tower, seeing as how he was also still in school. He would remain there until he was twenty-one, until which point he would either get a job made specifically for those with autism or he would remain at the Tower doing whatever he liked for the rest of his days. He was the only Avengers child who did not have a friend of some sort over for dinner that night, but he did not feel alone. His sister and Jim were sticking close to his side.

He played with his Stark Pad for the majority of the night, using it to tell people what he wanted. He hardly ever spoke, but he did if he had to. He only used about four words: Mom, Dad, 'Laina, and You. He lingered around the edges, not liking the amount of people in the room and how loud it was. Luckily, his dad had gotten him his large, blue headphones before it started getting too loud for him. He loved his blue headphones.

After dinner and during dessert, where everyone was mingling everywhere, Alaina jumped at random. "Oh! Jamie!" She scrambled over to her brother who didn't react to her arrival in his corner. He just kept playing Flow. She lifted up the material of her dress a little and kneeled in front of her little brother. She held out her hands for the Stark Pad and bent her fingers towards her, signaling that she wanted it.

Wordlessly, he handed it to her and she began tapping at the screen as her dad came over. He leaned over her shoulder and watched as she booted up Skype. "What are you doing?" Steve asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"There's someone I want him to meet," she answered back without looking up. Captain America watched with interest as she turned the Pad around to face James. "Jamie, this is Violet. Say hi to Violet!" Alaina waved her hand and James imitated her sloppily, not looking at the screen.

Steve sat down with a sigh and backed up against the wall with his son. On the screen was a teenage girl who stared back with bright purple eyes. She blinked and waved. "Hi," she said quietly.

After raising an autistic son for seventeen years, Steve could just tell that this girl had autism too. But unlike James, she seemed to be able to talk and understand the majority of what went on around her.

James whined a little, whipping his head to the side every two seconds before finally raising his eyes to the screen. The two of them made eye contact – it lasted for about three seconds before they both looked away.

"James," Alaina started again, "Violet is like you. She's my friend's cousin. She lives in Jersey. She likes talking to people."

As if on cue, Violet began chatting away, usually about nothing and saying things that didn't make sense. Alaina gently set the Stark Pad on James' lap and grabbed her dad's arm, slowly backing away. Little Jamie (who wasn't so little anymore) began rocking back and forth as if nodding to what she was saying.

Steve watched and his eyes softened. His son might never be able to fall in love or get married or have kids or go to University, but maybe… he could have a friend.

**A/N. So yeah. Just a peak into the lives of the Avengers children when they're older. Thank you to xXMidnightBloom for the prompt via PM :) And next time, we have Jim and Alaina chewing out their parents after their first date for spying on them ;) Stay tuned!**

**P.S. Just FYI, after next chapter, I've run out of prompts, so I'm going to start writing down my own ideas to keep writing. Just a reminder that if any of you guys have ideas, feel free to tell me and I'll spit out some drabbles for you :D**


	19. Chapter 19: Strange Occurrences

**A/N. Hello :) Sorry this is a day late, I totally forgot and when I realized I almost did a spit take with my orange juice like, "CRAP! I didn't update on time!". So... sorry :( But anyway, I hope you like this drabble! It takes place just after Master Spy Touch when Alaina and Jim get back home from their date. Thank you to Second daughter of Eve for the prompt and enjoy, all of you :D**

**P.S. OMG AGENTS OF SHIELD WAS SO EPIC! Review if you agree ;)**

**Alaina (Steve) - 17**

**Jim (Clintasha) - 16**

**Brianna (Bretty) - 14**

**Others not important**

Strange Occurences

The elevator doors opened and Alaina and Jims stepped out onto the lounge floor, arms linked. Every single one of their very large and extended family were waiting for them there, all trying not to look like they were specifically doing just that. Bruce had even gone so far as to whistle "nonchalantly".

Alaina removed her high heeled shoes with a sigh, alerting the others to their presence. Captain and Mrs. Rogers' heads both snapped up. Mrs. Rogers smiled. "Wellllll? How was it?"

"It was…" the teenage blonde eyed the other teenage blonde nervously, "perfect." The two shared a smile.

"And you, Jim?" Steve asked, lowering the newspaper he had been reading.

He coughed. "Um, what she said."

A beat.

"But what had to be the funniest part of the date was when I came back from the bathroom and Jim was checking his teeth in the mirror," Alaina began giggling and Jim blushed bright red, "before he was hit with a piece of food that came from this table where a woman was sitting all alone."

Natasha and Clint shared a very brief, scandalized glance.

"Yeah, and then," Jim continued for her, "I look around for the person who threw food at my head and saw this guy sitting at a coffee shop across the street wearing sunglasses inside. Weird, right?"

No one moved.

"And then I see this tall blonde dude walk by the window and take off a brown wig right before he was out of sight. Who wears wigs these days?"

Steve coughed awkwardly.

"You guys wouldn't happen to know anything about any of these strange occurrences… would you?" Alaina and Jim crossed their arms in perfect sync.

Several seconds passed before Steve finally (shyly) raised his hand. "Um, that-that guy with the brown wig. It was me."

No reaction.

"Before you say anything," he stood up and walked over to the two teens in the center of the room, "I'm sorry I invaded your privacy and spied on you. It was wrong and even though it wasn't my idea, I went along with it and I shouldn't have. Forgive me?" He held out his arms and his daughter practically melted like a chocolate bar in a microwave.

She threw her arms around him and buried her face into his broad chest. "I was never mad at you, Dad. I know you would never do it except under, _The Influence." _She turned her head to glare at Clint and Natasha who were both leveling her stare with confusion in their eyes. Oh they were good, but their "good" was running out.

"Mom. Dad." Jim approached his parents and they both visibly winced. "Do you have anything to say?"

"Nope. Not a peep."

Natasha smacked her husband's bicep.

"Ow! I don't want to tell them!"

She smacked him again.

"Ow! Fu- I mean, uh, fudge!" There were, after all, little kids present. "You were part of this too!"

Her death glare had him reeling back and he slouched in the arm chair he was sitting in. He mumbled to himself about unfairness while Jim tapped his foot impatiently. "I'm waiting."

The archer sighed. "Your mom and I may have… spied on you for your date."

Jim turned to his mom.

She held her ground for a moment before realizing this was her son, not some evil interrogator, and slouched as well. "And I may have flicked food at your head – on more than one occasion."

"Wait, what?" He reached behind him for the back of his head and sure enough, when he pulled his palm in front of his face, there were chunks of brown, green, and yellow smudged between his fingers. His face darkened to a crimson-y shade. "Aw man!"

Tony sniggered.

Alaina pulled away from her father and made her way over to her date. She turned him around. "Here, let me." She began gently pulling chunks of food out of his thin hair while his blush deepened. Light laughter permeated the air-

"Shut up!" He whined, crossing him arms like a kid.

Alaina chuckled. "Wait- is this… a spit ball?"

"Well, glad to know you guys had a nice time gotta go bye!" Natasha grabbed Clint's wrist and all but dragged him to the elevator.

"Nat! Where are we going?"

"Our room."

"Why? We can't hide in there."

"He won't come in if we're doing… certain things."

Her perked up visibly. "Alriight!"

The doors closed just as Jim (and the majority of the teens and children in the room) shuddered. He wrinkled his nose. "Gross."

"Agreed." Alaina ran her hands down his neck and shoulders, along his arms and to his hands, swinging them back and forth. "All done," she sing-songed.

"Thanks," he turned to face her with that charming grin of his and those DIMPLES-

"You're welcome," she said back before her thoughts could trail anywhere else. "And… thanks. Tonight was legit epic." She kissed his cheek before twirling away and walking toward the elevator.

Poor, happy, lovesick Jim was left paralyzed in the middle of the floor with a goofy look on his face. When Alaina was gone, the others began to laugh (except Steve, who was frowning but keeping his 'daddy problems' thoughts to himself). Jim was practically a tomato at this point. "Stop la-! You know what? Nevermind." He plopped down on the couch next to Brianna. "So? When's your first date?"

Oh _hell_ no. Bruce started turning green.

**A/N. So I kind of made them a _bit_ OOC to add humour, hope you guys don't mind. Also, next time, read as Lindy and Mark call Tony and Pepper "Mom" and "Dad" for the very first times! Stay tuned! :D**


	20. Chapter 20: Mr Tony & Mrs Pepper

**A/N. Hey everybody :) Here's the Stark family drabble as promised. It's split into two, one for Lindy and Pepper (at the top) and one for Mark and Tony (at the bottom). They happen one after another and Lindy is sick. Anyway, hope you enjoy! :D**

**Mark (Pepperony) = 13**

**Lindy (Pepperony) = 6 (soon to be 7)**

**1) Mrs. Pepper**

Lindy Stark sneezed into her hands. She spread her fingers, staring at the gooey things stuck to her skin. "Ew."

Pepper turned around from her spot at the book shelf, trying to find a bedtime story. "Bless you- oh! Okay Lindy, let's get you to the bathroom.

The six year old groaned and threw her head back onto the pillow. "But 'm tired," she moaned before letting loose a weak cough."

The red head smoothed the little girl's hair back. "I know Sweetie, I know. But we've got to get the icky snot off your hands so you can go to bed nice and clean and get better."

She sighed. "Okay…"

With what seemed like enough effort to lift the world, the adopted daughter of two of the most famous people in the world pushed away the covers and stood up on shaky legs. Clinging to her guardian's skirt with her good hand, the two of them trudged to the bathroom down the hall.

Pepper lifted Lindy onto the counter and began washing her hands in the sink. "Did you brush your teeth like I asked you too?"

"Yes, Mrs. Pepper." The co-CEO smiled. Ever since they first met, Lindy had been calling them Mr. Tony and Mrs. Pepper despite the couple's many attempts to strike the formalities like her brother did. It had only been less than a year since the siblings had been adopted, but it was close enough. Tony had ig plans for the day (of which Pepper needed to remind him).

"Did you wash your face?"

"Yeah."

"Did you go to the toilet?"

"Uh huh."

"Are you in your PJs?"

She giggled. "You can see them." She gestured to the Captain America shield T-shirt and Iron Man pants (both oversized) that she wore, much to Tony's chagrin of mix and match. Her tiny hands flung toward the clothing, accidentally splashing Pepper in the face.

Lindy gasped and brought her hands to her mouth as Pepper's own dropped in fake shock. "How _dare_ you?!" She asked with over exaggerated disbelief.

Realizing it was just a game and that she wasn't going to get hit, Lindy grinned maniacally. "Oops."

Pepper grabbed the child around her torso from behind and swung her around the exceedingly large bathroom of the Stark/Potts floor. Both of their giggles echoed within the smooth surfaces of the room. The wife swung her kid all the way back to the bedroom and plopped her down onto the bed.

"Do you know what happens when you splash adults?" Pepper whispered close to Lindy's ear. The six-year old shook her head rapidly. "You get… TICKLED!" Mrs. Stark wiggled her fingers across the girl's stomach as her victim squealed and twisted and turned.

"STOP! STOP! PLEASE! STOP!"

After several more seconds of merciless "torture", Pepper stopped as Lindy let out another harsh cough. "Sorry, Sweetheart."

" 's fine."

Pepper tucked in the tiny bundle of sickness and happiness and kissed the top of her head goodnight. "Sweet dreams."

Lindy yawned and rolled over so that she was facing the doorway, already breathing deeply. Looks like there would be no need for a story that night. Just as Pepper was about to leave, she heard a soft, "Sweet dreams, Mommy."

* * *

**2) Mr. Tony**

"Pass me that wrench?"

Mark handed Tony the tool without a word.

"Thanks."

It was silent. Mark Potts sat on one of the work tables in Tony's lab while the man himself worked on making adjustments to Dummy, crouched beneath the robot. Bruce had excused himself to go to the bathroom so it was just the two of them.

Mark looked around, observing everything but the inventor a few feet away. "So, uh… Tony?"

He grunted. "Yeah? Ow! Fu-"

"Can I have a cell phone?" he blurted, staring at the floor so hard it would make a hole if he'd had laser vision.

"What for?" Little tweaks and clangs suddenly became audible as Tony worked.

Mark's cheeks flushed. "Um, well, everyone at school has one."

"Don't you have one?"

"No."

"Oh."

There was pregnant silence.

"… so can I have one?"

"What? Oh! Yeah, yeah sure kid. Whatever you want."

The teen grinned. "Awesome! Thanks Dad!"

They both froze. For a long time, neither of them moved. You and Butterfingers moved about, cleaning and organizing as best they could, whizzing and making mechanical noises that they tend to emit. Seconds ticked by.

Finally: "What?" Tony broke the silence.

Mark cleared his throat. "Um… Thanks Tony. You're… you're awesome?" The kid was just digging himself a deeper hole.

"Did you… call me Dad?"

"No!"

"Are you sure?"

"Can we change the subject? PLEASE," he begged. Tony took one look at his adopted son's pleading face and crumbled. But he was going to go with the fact that he didn't like emotional talk either. Perhaps they had more in common than initially thought.

He cleared his throat and stuck his head back underneath Dummy, who was propped up by two tables. "So, just because everyone else has a phone, you want one?"

Relieved, Mark nodded. "Yeah." He took a sip of Tony's coffee just lying on the table, half full. No one needed to know.

"Did you get a girl's number?"

The older brother spluttered coffee all over the place and coughed, pounding his sternum with the side of his fist. Tony poked his head back out again.

"You okay there, kid?"

A red-faced Mark nodded and wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. "Yeah," he inhaled sharply. "M' fine."

The billionaire raised an eyebrow at the answer and at the coffee spilled all over the place. He didn't question it. It was probably cold anyway. "You sure?"

"Yup."

"So it _was_ a girl's number?"

The boy's face flamed. "No!" He denied.

"Listen kid, I know that look." He pointed at his "son", his index finger just millimetre's away from the kid's nose. "This has something to do with a girl."

"I-I"

"Mark. You can tell me."

The recently turned thirteen year old stared deeply into Tony's eyes, searching, imploring. Eventually, he sighed. "Fine. Earlier today… a girl asked me for my number."

Tony's eyebrows rose so high they almost reached his hair line. "And?"

"I told you that I just got a new phone and didn't know the number yet. She said that she'd just put her number directly into it but I told her it was in my locker. So…" he rolled up his sleeve and held out his forearm to the mechanic.

Tony smirked at the phone number written in black sharpie, accentuated with the curly cue of what was no doubt a girl's hand writing. "Nice."

"So… that's why I want a phone."

"Sure thing kid. I'll get you a Stark phone. The best of the best. Better yet, I'll make one for you. You'll take it to school tomorrow and you'll text that girl something witty. End it with a winky face. If possible, have her look up after getting it and see you winking at her."

Mark lit up like a Christmas tree. "You're the best!" He lunged forward and hugged Tony around the waist just long enough for the genius to be stunned but not long enough for it to be reciprocated.

At that moment, the distinct sound of Pepper's heels descending the stairs caught both of their attentions just before the glass door whizzed open and she entered, Bruce not far behind. "How are my boys?" she asked, kissing Tony's forehead and touching Mark's cheek gently.

"Good," they chorused.

"Come on Sweetie, it's time for bed." She nodded in the direction of the stairs right before spotting the coffee stains on his shirt. "Have you been drinking coffee?!"

Mark visibly shrunk back. "Uh-"

"It's a school night," she scolded. "You're too young for coffee."

"How old do I have to be?"

"Umm… eighteen."

"Fourteen."

"Seventeen."

"Fifteen."

"Sixteen, final offer."

"Deal."

They shook hands before morphing it into their secret handshake involving claps, taps, twists, and exclamations. "Okay buddy, it really is time for bed." She glared at Tony. "You and I will be having a talk later."

"Great…" he mumbled sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes and lead Mark out of the lab as Bruce settled in at the counter on the opposite wall. Just before the door closed, Tony's ears perked. "Night Dad."

His head snapped up, but his wife and son were already gone. His shoulder slumped. "Night son."

Bruce blinked. "Did I miss something?"

**A/N. Voila! Well? Did you like it? Let me know vie review! (If you want to, that is.) Next time, Brianna hulks out... at school! :OOO Stay tuned! ;)**


	21. Chap21: Actions Speak Louder Than Words

**A/N. Hi guys! Welcome back to Our Children. This one is not very happy but it's not overly sad either (in my opinion). I hope you like it anyway though, because let's be honest, the lives of these kids can't be happy 24/7. Enjoy! :D**

**Brianna (Bretty) = 15**

**Jim (Clintasha) = 17**

**Alaina (Steve/Anon) = 18 [graduated]**

* * *

Brianna Banner gripped the cafeteria tray with white knuckles.

"I heard that he destroyed an entire city just last week!"

"I heard that he killed his past four wives during sex because he was too aggressive."

"I heard that the Hulk-"

"ENOUGH!" She roared, crushing the metal plate in her hands as if it were paper. The mush and food that had been plopped onto her tray exploded and covered the gossiping girls as well as herself. Her breathing became erratic to match her raising heart rate. "SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU!"

The group of girls stared, wide-eyed, and slowly began backing away. They watched as Brianna's skin slowly began to turn a sickly shade of lime green and her normally calm brown eyes were devoured by a thick haze of colour. The veins in her neck, forehead, and arms popped out dramatically and her teeth were bared.

Then something in her snapped and her expressions turned horrified. She looked down at her hands. They were turning green and getting chubbier by the second. That's when the pain started. "No! NO!" She clutched at her ears in a useless attempt at muffling the ringing in her head.

She didn't remember making the conscious decision to run, but she found herself shoving her side into the double doors of the caf and launched herself down the hallway. The pain began blurring at her vision and she clutched and clawed at the air for something to hold on to.

_Oh God. Not here. Not now. Please._

She fell inside the girl's washroom, scaring the others so much that they ran outside screaming but who gave a damn anymore?

Her skin and clothing began to tear and she screamed, thrashing on the floor. Pain engulfed her as did the darkness of the tiny room. She didn't know how long she lay like that, panting in the stall, still green as ever, when the door opened.

She sobbed and covered her face with her arms. No one knew she could Hulk out. They knew she was Banner's daughter, but they didn't know of the capabilities she had.

But something unexpected happened.

The door closed and the person turned on the light. She looked up and gulped. There was Jim. He was in his last year of high school, just two years her senior and looking extremely sympathetic.

She'd never told him. She'd never told anyone about her ability to Hulk out save her parents, who'd discovered it at about the same time she did.

But it made sense that he didn't freak out like the others. He lived with her for one thing. He was the son of two master assassins – Avengers – for another. He'd most likely already pieced together the puzzle of what had happened.

He knelt down beside her and grasped her huge, green hand. He was saying something but her heart was pounding in her ears too loudly to hear anything more than nails on a chalkboard. Her vision had cleared though, and she could read his lips well enough to know that he had said something along the lines of, "I'm here." Not, "it's okay" or "it's going to be okay" or "you'll be fine" but "I'm here".

He used his index and middle fingers to point at her eyes, then his own, silently asking her for eye contact. She nodded and found herself staring into his stormy grey eyes, just like his father's. Eventually, time passed and her heart beat slowed down to a normal pace and the green (and the pain) began to fade. Her muscles contracted and she felt as if she'd just finished giving birth (not that she knew what that felt like but she imagined it would be rather similar).

She sagged and immediately felt Jim's arms surround her. She'd always thought of him as her cousin, just like she did the others. It didn't matter that he and Alaina were dating; they were both cousins to her just like everyone else. But Jim was the closest to her in age, so it would make sense that they would be pretty close. However, it was mainly the gender that kept them apart. Brianna tended to hang out more with his girlfriend than him, but they were still pretty close.

At that moment, she knew they'd just gotten infinitely closer. Physically and emotionally drained, Brianna lifted her exhausted arms to wrap around his back and hug him in thanks for staying with her – for not fearing her. He patted her awkwardly and leaned back against the stall door, sighing as he looked around at the pink tinted walls of the girls' bathroom.

She would have to repay him somehow. She didn't know how yet, but she would. If it was the last thing she did, she would thank him in some way. After all, actions speak louder than words.

**A/N. Next time, stay tuned for a James/Violet oneshot as requested by a reviewer :) That's all folks! ;)**

**P.S. Sorry if it wasn't that great. I wrote this in like, half-an-hour late at night. I can rewrite it if you guys want me to.**


	22. Chapter 22: Vi

**A/N. Hi guys :) So... I kind of... stopped feeling it for this fic. I'm not going to stop writing right away, but the deadline on each drabble will be longer because a) I'm honestly VERY busy (more than I thought I'd be) b) I'm running out of ideas and prompts soon and since this fic isn't going anywhere, it's hard for me to continue and c) I now have a beta, and to send the documents to her and then have then edited, returned, fixed up, and then posted might take longer than a week. I have about... 3 prompts left, of which I hope you'll like. That will leave this story at a good 25 chapters. I might come back to this at some point, but to keep updating and forcing myself to write for it when I don't have ideas or prompts when I could be writing something else or doing work... isn't as appealing as it once was. I apologize to all those who wish for this to go on past 25 chapters, but I hope you've enjoyed it thus far. So... yeah. My beta didn't edit this drabble because I wanted to get this is on time and I just wrote it today, but as of tomorrow onward, these will be beta-ed by FanFickChick101. Thank you to the Lollipop Butler for the prompt of a James/Violet fic. :) Anyway, I think that's all I have to say so... Enjoy! :D**

**James (Steve/Anon) = 18 (it's been one year since the Avengers family reunion where James first met Violet, BTW)**

**Thomas (Thane) = 17**

"Uh huh," James agreed, nodding his head vigorously.

Steve smiled and handed his son the tablet. "Here you go."

Clumsily, eighteen year old Jamie Rogers grabbed the little computer and turned it over. A lopsided grin appeared on his face when he saw Violet. She waved her hand, wrist hanging limp. He mimicked her in rushed, harsh, movements.

With a grunt, Steve pushed himself to his feet and made his way over to the kitchen section of the lounge, where Thor was scarfing down pop tarts. Even after all this time, the demi god had never stopped loving them.

The Captain fetched a glass from one of the cupboards and got himself a glass of ice cold water. He observed his child over the rim with cerulean blue eyes. James was always happy talking to Violet. He would rock back and forth on his bum and stare at the screen longer than he could make eye contact with anyone.

Steve set the cup down and plopped into one of the bar stools. His back creaked. Despite the serum slowing down his aging process a little, having two adult children tended to make one feel old. He ran his hands through his hair, trying to block out the sounds of Violet's slurred voice with control over his super hearing.

"So Thor, how are you?" he asked to try and break the silence.

The King of Asgard swallowed his mouthful in one large gulp that Steve watched travel down the man's throat. "I am well, Steven. And yourself?"

"Tired."

"II understand." Thor nodded sympathetically.

James had been having a lot more tantrums than usual. They were becoming more and more frequent, and no one could figure out why. Tony, Bruce, Jane, and Betty had spent hours discussing it over tea (and alcohol – cough, Tony, cough) but hadn't been able to diagnose the problem despite the minimum of four PhDs between them.

JARVIS tried to help by using the security footage but not even the AI could find a common variable within the period of the freak-outs. All the Avengers could do was try to calm him down.

James tended to be rather… violent. Not towards others, toward himself. Steve wasn't sure which was worse to watch. Every time, the Captain would hold his son down so that he didn't bash his head in and give himself a concussion from banging it against the wall. Any others present would do their best to help. Alaina would sing a lullaby, his wife would go around fixing things that might be bothering him (crooked paintings, mismatching colours, ANYTHING). The others would remain silent or perhaps fetch those famous blue headphones. All the while, six foot tall Jamie would be thrashing in his father's arms like an angry child. He was strong, but not stronger than a super soldier.

So Thor could understand why Steve was tired. To watch his son try and beat himself up for reasons unexplained… it had to be painful. Jane had once told him that she'd seen their leader crying silently.

"Do you think we should bring them together?" Steve asked suddenly.

Thor blinked out of his daze. "Pardon?"

"James and Violet." His eyes never left the legal adult in the corner. "Should we get them to meet?" He brought the water to his lips once again, hoping to dull the headache and muffle the echo of his son's screams from past tantrums.

Thor stared down seriously at his comrade. "I may not be as knowledgeable in autism as you are, Friend Steve, but I know enough that they do not like change. A break in routine would be… pivotal?"

"I'm not quite sure that's the word you're looking for, but you're right about the change thing. But change is what brought Violet to James. And now look at him."

As "ordered", Thor turned to gaze at the boy just a year older than his own son. James did indeed look happy. His blinding smile never failed to brighten someone's spirits. He felt the corners of his own mouth begin to quirk upward. "Yes, he appears rather joyful. But there is still that risk."

Steve sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I know. But maybe if she's here… he'll… just be happier in general."

Ah. So he wanted to cure his son of these seemingly random tantrums. A noble cause. The thunder god gripped his teammate's shoulder. "You are a good father, Steve Rogers. No matter your decision, it will have been for his benefit. I have faith in you, for as our leader you have always made the right decision."

"Not always," he whispered back.

Thor leaned down to make eye contact with his fellow super hero. "No, not always. But no one can always make the perfect choice. It is impossible."

"Just like aliens and Gods existing aren't possible?" he chuckled darkly.

Thor frowned. "No. Tis different. But if you truly wish for my opinion I shall give it, but ultimately it is your decision."

A brief pause. Steve inhaled deeply and turned, squeaking on the bar stool to face him. "Let's hear it."

Thor shifted so that his left elbow rested on the cold counter top while his right hand was braced on his right knee. "Some things are worth the risk." He shot Steve a meaningful look.

Several seconds later, the war hero nodded. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

In true thunder fashion, Thor clapped his friend on the back. Even after so many years, Steve still jumped forward, spilling some of his water. "Remember our faith in you, Captain. And you _will_ make the right decision." With a flourish, the mighty King of Asgard exited the room.

Steve watched him go before returning his gaze to James, who giggled almost on cue. A small smile wove its way onto the blonde's face.

A few days later, Violet came to visit the Tower. She had lived in a nursing home before, so she had no parents to accompany her; however, she had a nurse by her side. Despite the odd start, James and Violet hit it off and spent hours together each day.

A week later, Violet refused to leave. She threw a tantrum as bad as James did, which made the Avengers wonder whether or not combining her with Jamie would be a good idea. The nurse apologized profusely, admitting that tantrums were rare with the sixteen year old girl. Steve and his wife shared a glance that spoke more than a thousand words.

That very day, a second autistic teenager moved into Avengers Tower; and James learned a new word: Vi.

**A/N. Next time on, Our Children, SHIELD comes into play for the very first time when Hill admits to Fury that "you chose the right person for the job." Stay tuned to find out what that means ;D**


End file.
